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Salt supply plentiful as early winter goes easy
(by Joan Demirjian - December 30, 2009)
Salt supply plentiful as early winter goes easy
By JOAN DEMIRJIAN
Few people keep a closer watch on weather forecasts than road departments. For the past few weeks, they have been watching the weather reports and waiting for the snow to come.
Well, it arrived Sunday night, and thanks to a mild beginning to the winter season, salt piles have remained well stocked. The acrea had received about 6 to 8 inches of snow so far this winter, but that about doubled this weekend.
With the break most of the area road departments have had until now, salt use was down, as were overtime hours.
Auburn Trustee John Eberly said salt has not been a problem this season for the township. "We have a new salt building, and it is still filled," he said. Only a few tons were used this year, he said.
"We're prepared. We have nearly a full supply," he said.
However, he recalled one winter in which it did not snow until January, and then storms followed, piling up the snowfall and making up for the lack of snow in the first part of the winter.
"We have had to do some salting, but not like 10 straight hours as in the past," Mr. Eberly said prior to Sunday's snowfall.
South Russell Streets Commissioner Darrell Johnson said the village has adequate salt supplies.
"We're in good shape," Mr. Johnson said. "We've been out four times so far," he said, as of Christmas Eve.
He recalled that four to five years ago, the crew worked almost the entire Christmas Day.
However, he said the rest of the winter could be bad. "Wait five minutes and it could change," he said last week.
The village paid $66.43 per ton for salt and this season it paid $55.25, Mr. Johnson said. However, compared to two years ago, salt prices are still high.
Unlike last year, salt is readily available. The department ordered 300 tons to top off the salt building in November and it was delivered in a matter of a day or two, Mr. Johnson said.
"It was early in the season, and people haven't been using it up," he said.
Salt shortages last season were due to local salt mines' commitments to out-of-state shipments. Stockpiles were low at the time, Mr. Johnson said.
"We're fairing well," Mr. Johnson said. "So far, this season has been a big savings in salt, fuel and overtime. We have had minimal overtime."
The department had eight hours of overtime in December and nothing in November. That is good for the budget, but hard on employees, he said.
Bainbridge Road Superintendent Wally Rudyk said the road department mostly has dealt with icing of roadways, and about 500 tons of salt was used, but that is not considered a lot for this time in a season.
"That's a small amount. Usually, its triple that," Mr. Rudyk said.
"We haven't been out as much and overtime hours are down, which is good for the township," he said.
But in his business, you don't get comfortable, Mr. Rudyk said. "I keep track of the weather. We monitor the local weather constantly."
They watch closely to determine whether crew members will stay or go home for the night, he said.
"While Lake Erie is open and not iced over, it's a big worry," Mr. Rudyk said of lake-effect snow.
The biggest winter for all the departments probably was the 1977-1978 blizzard, he said.
In contrast, Geauga County Engineer Robert Phillips said his department used a good deal of salt on county roads, mostly in the areas of eastern Geauga County and north of Mayfield Road (Route 322).
"We used a lot more than I wish we had with a freezing rain here and there. We used over 2,000 tons since the first of the month," Mr. Phillips said last week.
"We're geared for using 15,000 to 18,000 tons of salt per year," he said. The county salt storage facility on Merritt Road in Claridon is well stocked. "We're not in any trouble," Mr. Phillips said.
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