ST. LOUIS – De-icing salts applied to roads or sidewalks that improve winter conditions for civilians can harm local area ecosystems and aquatic life.
These types of salts help lower the freezing point of water on pavement, which prevents the formation of ice. Once temperatures rise, the salt and water mixture will begin to flow into storm drains, followed by local streams and groundwater supplies.
Excessive levels of chloriden are used as a principal ingrediant within deicing salts and impair the ability of plants to successfully absorb water and nutrients…