Changes

Each year, Canadians spend over $1 billion on public and private roads, parking lots and sidewalks (Hossain et al., 2015)<ref>Hossain, S.K., Fu, L. and Lake, R., 2015. Field evaluation of the performance of alternative deicers for winter maintenance of transportation facilities. Canadian Journal of Civil Engineering, 42(7), pp.437-448. https://cdnsciencepub.com/doi/abs/10.1139/cjce-2014-0423</ref>. While the use of salt is essential to ensure public safety, there is a growing concern regarding the large quantities of salt (mainly chloride ions), being released to the environment.  

Each year, Canadians spend over $1 billion on public and private roads, parking lots and sidewalks (Hossain et al., 2015)<ref>Hossain, S.K., Fu, L. and Lake, R., 2015. Field evaluation of the performance of alternative deicers for winter maintenance of transportation facilities. Canadian Journal of Civil Engineering, 42(7), pp.437-448. https://cdnsciencepub.com/doi/abs/10.1139/cjce-2014-0423</ref>. While the use of salt is essential to ensure public safety, there is a growing concern regarding the large quantities of salt (mainly chloride ions), being released to the environment.  

In their 2001 assessment under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, it was found that high releases of road salts from winter maintenance activities were having an adverse effect on freshwater ecosystems, soil, vegetation, and wildlife (Environment Canada, 2001)<ref>Environment Canada. 2001. PRIORITY SUBSTANCES LIST ASSESSMENT REPORT. Road Salts. Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999. Environment Canada and Health Canada. https://www.canada.ca/content/dam/hc-sc/migration/hc-sc/ewh-semt/alt_formats/hecs-sesc/pdf/pubs/contaminants/psl2-lsp2/road_salt_sels_voirie/road_salt_sels_voirie-eng.pdf</ref>. Based on this conclusion, Environment Canada developed its “[[https://publications.gc.ca/collections/collection_2012/ec/En49-31-1-5-eng.pdf Code of Practice the Environmental Management of Road Salts]],” which focuses mainly on municipal and provincial road maintenance. This code, which requires the development of Salt Management Plans for those organizations using more than 500 tonnes of road salt annually, was released by Environment Canada in 2004 (Environment Canada, 2004)<ref>Environment Canada. 2004. Code of practice for the Environmental Management of Road Salts. Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999 (CEPA 1999). April 2004. EPS 1/CC/5. https://publications.gc.ca/collections/collection_2012/ec/En49-31-1-5-eng.pdf</ref>. While the uptake of these guidelines has been successful, and many agencies have adopted best practices because of it, it is not generally applicable for companies that apply salt to private roads, parking lots, and roadways; and additional measures are needed to realize reductions in these areas.

In their 2001 assessment under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, it was found that high releases of road salts from winter maintenance activities were having an adverse effect on freshwater ecosystems, soil, vegetation, and wildlife (Environment Canada, 2001)<ref>Environment Canada. 2001. PRIORITY SUBSTANCES LIST ASSESSMENT REPORT. Road Salts. Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999. Environment Canada and Health Canada. https://www.canada.ca/content/dam/hc-sc/migration/hc-sc/ewh-semt/alt_formats/hecs-sesc/pdf/pubs/contaminants/psl2-lsp2/road_salt_sels_voirie/road_salt_sels_voirie-eng.pdf</ref>. Based on this conclusion, Environment Canada developed its “[https://publications.gc.ca/collections/collection_2012/ec/En49-31-1-5-eng.pdf Code of Practice the Environmental Management of Road Salts],” which focuses mainly on municipal and provincial road maintenance. This code, which requires the development of Salt Management Plans for those organizations using more than 500 tonnes of road salt annually, was released by Environment Canada in 2004 (Environment Canada, 2004)<ref>Environment Canada. 2004. Code of practice for the Environmental Management of Road Salts. Canadian Environmental Protection Act, 1999 (CEPA 1999). April 2004. EPS 1/CC/5. https://publications.gc.ca/collections/collection_2012/ec/En49-31-1-5-eng.pdf</ref>. While the uptake of these guidelines has been successful, and many agencies have adopted best practices because of it, it is not generally applicable for companies that apply salt to private roads, parking lots, and roadways; and additional measures are needed to realize reductions in these areas.

There are studies and training programs that address these issues, which aim to educate private contractors about best practices, and how these can improve level of service, protect the environment, and reduce costs. However, uptake of these programs has been low.  

There are studies and training programs that address these issues, which aim to educate private contractors about best practices, and how these can improve level of service, protect the environment, and reduce costs. However, uptake of these programs has been low.