Snowfall is up this winter in many Northern states, so salt levels in rivers and streams are rising too.
A recent study by University of Maryland researchers found that waters in the Northeast have gotten increasingly salty over the past three decades as a result of deicers used on roads.
Sujay Kaushal of Maryland’s Center for Environmental Science said salt levels in New York’s Hudson River, in Baltimore’s water system and in New Hampshire’s mountain streams directly corresponded to the amount of paved surfaces and snowfall in each of those areas.
Well users in the Boston suburbs are tasting saltier water from their taps, too, largely because last winter was one of the snowiest on record for the region, according to the Boston Globe.
No one disputes the need to keep roads clear of ice and snow in the winter, but environmental groups like the Sierra Legal Defense Fund and RiverSides in Toronto are encouraging cities to find alternatives to salt, according to the Joyce Foundation’s September newsletter.
There’s little doubt that the seasoning of Northern waters is continuing this winter. According to a National Weather Service database snowfall has been above average since Dec. 1 in Boston, Pittsburgh, Detroit, Chicago and Minneapolis, just to name a few.
