Chloride Levels Have
Risen in Urban Streams and Rivers in the Northern States
The Community Science Institute, located in Ithaca, has
collected volunteer stream data for several decades, and published an article
on ‘Road Salt in Local Streams’ in spring of 2015. The article indicates that the majority of
road salt (mostly consisting of sodium, calcium, and magnesium chlorides)
enters streams by infiltration to groundwater.
Chloride from road salt is absorbed into groundwater over time,
eventually leading to increased chloride levels in streams.
An interesting
observation in the same article is that the chloride levels stay relatively
stable in most streams throughout the year, rather than increasing in the
winter and decreasing in summer. The
salt does not simply wash off the road and directly into the stream; it is
apparently a slower, longer process. We
have found similar results for chloride measurements taken in various
urban/suburban streams in Onondaga County during various late winter through
mid-fall surveys.
read more in the Link to Chloride Report
Chloride Levels Have
Risen in Urban Streams and Rivers in the Northern States
A 2014 article in the Great Lakes Echo newsletter notes
that rivers in wintry cities remain salty year-round. About 35 billion pounds of salt are applied
to wintry roads in the United States every year. Much of it winds up in rivers and lakes.
The Community Science Institute, located in Ithaca, has
collected volunteer stream data for several decades, and published an article
on ‘Road Salt in Local Streams’ in spring of 2015. The article indicates that the majority of
road salt (mostly consisting of sodium, calcium, and magnesium chlorides)
enters streams by infiltration to groundwater.
Chloride from road salt is absorbed into groundwater over time,
eventually leading to increased chloride levels in streams.
An interesting
observation in the same article is that the chloride levels stay relatively
stable in most streams throughout the year, rather than increasing in the
winter and decreasing in summer. The
salt does not simply wash off the road and directly into the stream; it is
apparently a slower, longer process. We
have found similar results for chloride measurements taken in various
urban/suburban streams in Onondaga County during various late winter through
mid-fall surveys.
read more in the Link to Chloride Report
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