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As the "''Time to Reach Bare Pavement Scenario Comparison''" above demonstrates, significant salt and cost savings could be seen in a typical big box store, commercial business or institutional building's parking lot by simply reducing the application rate of rock salt and extending the time to bare pavement by one hour. To note, this is only the material cost of the salt (which varies, but has been [https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ottawa/ottawa-contractors-road-salt-price-hike-1.4934369 higher than $100/tonne in recent years] (Tumilty, 2018)<ref>Tumilty, R. 2018. Rise in road salt prices hits local contractors. Available at: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ottawa/ottawa-contractors-road-salt-price-hike-1.4934369 (Accessed: 24 Mar., 2022)</ref>. Over-application of salt has been noted to cause significant damage to parking lot infrastructure, including issues with concrete, corrosion of railings, damage to landscaping materials, and damage to interior buildings' flooring. Reducing the application rate would decrease the rate at which this damage occurs, as a result helping to minimize the amount needed to repair or replace at a given property each year. All of this without sacrificing the safety of parking lot users.
As the "''Time to Reach Bare Pavement Scenario Comparison''" above demonstrates, significant salt and cost savings could be seen in a typical big box store, commercial business or institutional building's parking lot by simply reducing the application rate of rock salt and extending the time to bare pavement by one hour. To note, this is only the material cost of the salt (which varies, but has been [https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ottawa/ottawa-contractors-road-salt-price-hike-1.4934369 higher than $100/tonne in recent years] (Tumilty, 2018)<ref>Tumilty, R. 2018. Rise in road salt prices hits local contractors. Available at: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ottawa/ottawa-contractors-road-salt-price-hike-1.4934369 (Accessed: 24 Mar., 2022)</ref>. Over-application of salt has been noted to cause significant damage to parking lot infrastructure, including issues with concrete, corrosion of railings, damage to landscaping materials, and damage to interior buildings' flooring. Reducing the application rate would decrease the rate at which this damage occurs, as a result helping to minimize the amount needed to repair or replace at a given property each year. All of this without sacrificing the safety of parking lot users.
==Environmental Impacts==
Salt contamination in freshwater (freshwater salinization) is a major concern to Ontarians wellbeing:
*Unpleasant taste in drinking water
*Health issue for those with hypertension issues
*Health issue for those who have experienced congestive heart failure
*Impacts to those with sodium restricted diets
Furthermore, salt can contribute to both bipodievrsity and habitat loss for numerous species. In Ontario, road salt was identified as one of the threats to drinking water under the Clean Water Act, 2006 - as well as a known toxin to wildlife species<ref>Government of Ontario. 2006. Clean Water Act, 2006, S.O. 2006, c. 22. https://www.ontario.ca/laws/statute/06c22.</ref>. Salt can impacts bird species, many plants and trees growth ability, and decrease size, function and fecundify in fish, mollusks (snail, mussels, etc.), amphibians and benthic invertebrate species.
Staff from TRCA released an article in the January/February, 2022 edition of Water Canada magazine highlighting the effects of rock salt's over use and application across Southern Ontario's watersheds and is impact on freshwater environments and species.
Some of the key findings from the article highlight:
* In Ontario chloride concentrations (Cl<sup>-</sup>) are measured monthly under the Provincial Water Quality Monitoring Network (PWQMN)<ref>Ontario Government. 2021. Provincial (Stream) Water Quality Monitoring Network. https://data.ontario.ca/dataset/provincial-stream-water-quality-monitoring-network (Accessed: 25 Mar., 2022). Concentrations in the mouth of the Don River has showcased levels three times that of the Canadian Water Quality Guidance (CWQG) for long-term chronic effects to the environment and species.
* Although the PWQMN has been an excellent tool for following the long-term trends of median concentration levels in the province's watersheds the infrequency of sampling will at times miss peak and extreme values and outliers that result in excessive salt and chloride loadings in key areas with species at risk, etc.\
==External links==
==External links==
*[http://www.smartaboutsalt.com/ Smart about Salt]
*[http://www.smartaboutsalt.com/ Smart about Salt]
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