Study Shows How Road Salts and Other Man-Made Materials Actually Harms Freshwater Sources

As winter storms threaten to make driving risky, residents often use salt to melt snow and ice on roads, intersections, and sidewalks. Since thousands of people die or are hospitalized every year due to weather-related collisions, road salt is an effective safety tool.

Road salts are the most common human-related salt source in the Northeast, but other sources include waste spills and discharges. Tracks, bridges, and structures that have weathered include limestone, concrete, or gypsum, both of which emit salt. The study adds to a growing body of evidence that both salt sources emit chemical cocktails that damage natural and built environments. Changes in salt levels, for example, may cause parasitic, salt-tolerant species to take over a stream.

Salts will corrode water pipes, releasing heavy metals into drinking water sources, according to the study. Salt's complicated relationships with the atmosphere are little known. According to the report, each lake, stream, and aquifer poses its own set of management challenges. According to the study, management methods must consider salt inputs from various sources. "The increasing complexity and severity of these problems astound me," says the study's co-author.

While technological advancements have helped to mitigate runoff, there are currently no safe and reliable alternatives to road salts.

Kaushal believes that policy, emerging technology, and a well-coordinated management strategy can mitigate the risks of Freshwater Salinization Syndrome on a large scale.

"In the end, we need higher-level oversight, and we still don't have enough safeguards for municipal jurisdictions and water bodies," Kaushal said.

Continuing Observation

The study recommends that water monitoring activities be increased in the future and that new sensor equipment will collect continuous data. Scientists may use high-frequency sensor data to track peaks in salinity and water flow, which can help them predict the chemical structure and concentration of contaminants caused by Freshwater Salinization Syndrome.

For more environmental news, don't forget to follow Nature World News!