% OF VOTING TO ELECT A SPEAKER.
% UNLESS YOU'RE NEW TO WISCONSIN,
% YOU'VE SEEN THE SNOWPLOWS OUT
% THIS WINTER.
% NOT ONLY CLEANING THE ROADS BUT
% LAYING DOWN SALT.
% WHILE THIS MAKES IT SAFER FOR
% DRIVERS IT'S BECOMING A PROBLEM
% FOR OUR STATE'S FRESHWATER
% BODIES.%>> ONE THING WE'RE S
EEING IN A
% LOT OF URBAN AREAS IN WISCONSIN
% IS INCREASING IS A LI SALINITY R
% LAKES AND RIVERS.
% THAT'S A PROBLEM BECAUSE
% HISTORICALLY WE WERE BLESSED
% WITH A LOT OF FRESHWATER IN
% WISCONSIN.
% OFTEN WE TAKE THAT FOR GRANTED,
% IN OUR WATER BODIES, THAT CAUSES
% PROBLEMS FOR AQUATIC ORGANISMS
% IN FRESHWATER ENVIRONMENTS.
% IT ALSO CAUSES PROBLEMS FOR
% HUMANS IF THAT'S THE DRINKING
% WATER SOURCE, WE'RE SEEING
% INCREASE IN SALINITY IN LAKES,
% WE'RE LIKELY ALSO SEEING IT IN
% GROUNDWATER, SO THIS KIND OF
% GOES BENEATH THE SURFACE.
% EVERY COUNTY IN THE STATE, ALL
% THIS CAN BE WASHED INTO OUR
% WATERS EVENTUALLY.
% >> TO LEARN MORE ABOUT IMPACT
% AND MITIGATION, WE TURN TO
% ELLISON MADISON, PROGRAM MANAGER
% AT WISCONSIN SALT WISE.
% THANKS FOR JOINING US.
% >> THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR HAVING
% ME.%>> SO WHAT IS SALT WISE
AND WHO
% ARE YOU WORKING WITH?
% >> IT ACTUALLY BEGAN IN THE
% MADISON AREA WITH THE CITY OF
% MADISON, DANE COUNTY, MADISON
% DANE COUNTY PUBLIC HEALTH, THE
% WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANT, THE
% WATER UTILITY, SEEING SALT
% CONCENTRATIONS INCREASE IN OUR
% LAKES, OUR STREAM AND OUR
% DRINKING WATER.
% SO THOSE ORGANIZATIONS CAME
% TOGETHER AND SAID WE NEED TO DO
% SOMETHING ABOUT THIS, AND
% INITIALLY THE GOAL WAS REACH OUT
% TO SOME OF THE BIGGEST USERS OF
% SALT, THE CITIES, DIFFERENT
% MUNICIPALITIES WITHIN THE COUNTY
% THEMSELVES AND THEY STARTED TO
% TRAIN OPERATORS, ANYBODY WHO'S
% PUTTING SALT DOWN ON BEST
% PRACTICES.
% AND THEN FROM THERE, SALT-WISE
% KIND OF GREW BECAUSE SOME OF THE
% OPERATORS WERE SAYING, YOU KNOW,
% THIS IS GREAT, BUT WE ALSO HAVE
% PRIVATE CONTRACTORS, THEY'RE
% PUTTING DOWN A LOT OF SALT ON
% PARKING LOTS AND SIDEWALKS, THEY
% NEED TO UNDERSTAND, AND THEN
% ALSO THE AUDIENCE OF JUST THE
% GENERAL PUBLIC CAME UP, RIGHT,
% LIKE IF THE PUBLIC DOESN'T
% UNDERSTAND WHY WE MIGHT WANT TO
% KIND OF CALIBRATE IN AND
% CONSIDER SALT USE, NOT JUST THAT
% MORE ISN'T ALWAYS BETTER, WE
% NEED TO MAKE SURE THAT MESSAGE
% GETS OUT TO THE PUBLIC SO THEY
% UNDERSTAND WHY WE'RE MAKING
% CHANGES AT THE MUNICIPAL,
% COUNTY, STATE LEVEL.
% >> SO WHAT'S THE TRADEOFF HERE
% BETWEEN MAKING ROADS SAFE AND
% KEEPING OUR GROUNDWATER SAFE?
% >> SO ACTUALLY I'M SO GLAD YOU
% ASKED THAT QUESTION, BECAUSE I
% REALLY -- WITH SALT-WISE, WHAT
% WE WANT TO DO IS KIND OF BREAK
% APART THAT DICHOTOMY OF WE'RE
% EITHER SAFE OR WE HAVE PURE
% FRESHWATER GOING FORWARD.
% BECAUSE REALLY A LOT OF THE BEST
% PRACTICES THAT THE SALT-WISE
% PARTNERSHIP ENCOURAGES ARE
% PRACTICES THAT DO NOT REDUCE THE
% LEVEL OF SERVICE ON OUR ROADS.
% SO THINGS LIKE CALIBRATING YOUR
% SALT SPREADERS SO YOU UNDERSTAND
% HOW MUCH SALT IS BEING PUT DOWN
% AND YOU CAN REALLY MAKE PRECISE
% APPLICATIONS BASED ON ROAD
% TEMPERATURE AND WEATHER TRENDS.
% ALSO USING LIQUID BRINES.
% YOU MAY HAVE SEEN THOSE LINES ON
% THE HIGHWAY BEFORE A STORM,
% SOMETIMES ON MUNICIPAL STREETS
% AS WELL.
% THOSE WORK TO PUT DOWN A VERY,
% VERY THIN LAYER OF SALT.
% I LIKE TO DESCRIBE IT LIKE
% PUTTING PAM SPRAY MAYBE, COOKING
% SPRAY, ON YOUR SKILL ET BEFORE
% YOU COOK.
% SO IF YOU CAN PREVENT THAT BOND
% FROM FORMING BETWEEN SNOW AND
% THE PAVEMENT, WHEN THE PLOW
% COMES, THE SNOW COMES UP SO MUCH
% MORE READILY, THEY USE A LOT
% LESS SALT AFTERWARDS, RIGHT?
% I THINK YOU PROBABLY SOMETIMES
% PUT SOME FOOD ON RIGHT BEFORE
% OILING THAT SKILL ET AND THEN
% YOU'RE SCRAPING AND SCRAPING
% AFTERWARDS.
% SO SOME OF THESE PRACTICES,
% USING LIQUID BRINES, CALIBRATING
% EQUIPMENT, THEY DON'T ACTUALLY
% REDUCE THE LEVEL OF SERVICE,
% THEY DON'T MAKE THE PAVEMENT
% LESS SAFE.
% SOMETIMES WE CAN ACTUALLY MAKE
% IT SAFER BECAUSE OF THE WORK OF
% LIQUID JUST WORKING SO MUCH MORE
% QUICKLY THAN SOLID ROCK SALT.
% SO IT'S NOT A QUESTION OF SAFE,
% AGAIN, OR, YOU KNOW, PROTECTING
% THE ENVIRONMENT, BUT IT'S REALLY
% JUST ADOPTING THOSE BEST
% PRACTICES.%>> SO CLIMATE CHAN
GE IS A BIG
% FACTOR HERE.
% IT'S CHANGING WHAT OUR WINTERS
% LOOK LIKE IN TERMS OF SIZE OF
% STORMS, WHEN SNOW RUNS OFF.
% DOES THAT CHANGE THE FORMULAS
% PEOPLE HAVE BEEN USING FOR YEARS
% ABOUT HOW TO LAY DOWN SALT?
% >> YEAH, SO ONE OF THE BIGGEST
% PROBLEMS IS WE HAVEN'T
% NECESSARILY USED FORMULAS IN THE
% PAST.
% WE'VE KIND OF JUST THOUGHT SALT
% IS GOOD, SOME IS GOOD, MORE IS
% BETTER, LET'S CRANK IT UP, PUT
% THE SALT DOWN, RIGHT?
% SO WE'RE SEEING THOSE
% CONVERSATIONS START TO CHANGE.
% PART OF IT IS THE ENVIRONMENTAL
% ASPECT OF THIS ISSUE, RIGHT,
% REALLY SEEING SALT
% CONCENTRATIONS INCREASE IN OUR
% FRESHWATER, BUT ANOTHER PIECE OF
% IT IS THE GROWING COST OF SALT
% ITSELF, AND ALSO THE FACT THAT
% SALT IS SUPER CORROSIVE, RIGHT?
% I THINK A LOT OF US SEE THAT
% MAYBE ON OUR PERSONAL VEHICLES,
% BUT SALT ALSO REALLY PREMATURELY
% AGES ROADS AND BRIDGES, AND SO
% WE'RE PAYING A LOT MORE FOR SALT
% THESE DAYS AND WE'RE STARTING TO
% SEE THE COST OF THAT.
% SO I THINK THAT THIS WORK IS
% REALLY JUST STARTING TO HAVE
% APPLICATORS, THOSE BIGGEST
% APPLICATORS ARE SEEING IT FIRST,
% KIND OF HOW DO WE DIAL IN AND
% RIGHT-SIZE OUR SALT USE AS THE
% CLIMATE CONTINUES TO CHANGE AND
% WE HAVE MORE MAYBE SNOW EVENT
% FOLLOWED BY WARM SPELLS WITH
% RAIN, YOU KNOW, WE SEE THAT IF
% THERE'S ANY EXTRA SALT THAT'S
% BEEN PUT DOWN ON PAVEMENT, IT'S
% JUST WASHING AWAY, RIGHT?
% INTO OUR STREAMS.
% >> SO FOR INDIVIDUALS -- JUST A
% FEW SECONDS LEFT, WHAT SHOULD
% THEY THINK ABOUT WHEN THEY SALT
% THEIR SIDEWALK OR THEIR STEPS?
% >> THANK YOU.
% SO WE REALLY ENCOURAGE PEOPLE TO
% SHOVEL, SCATTER, SWITCH, AND
% THEN SWEEP.
% SO FIRST SHOVEL, GET OUT THERE
% AND MOVE AS MUCH SNOW AS YOU CAN
% POSSIBLY MOVE KIND OF MANUALLY
% OR MECHANICALLY WITH A
% SNOWBLOWER.
% SO SHOVEL, SCATTER.
% IF YOU DO NEED TO USE SALT, JUST
% APPLY IT AS NEEDED, BECAUSE
% EVERY TEASPOON OF SALT --
% 5 GALLONS OF WATER.
% SO IF YOU'VE GOT EXTRA SALT LEFT
% OVER YOU WANT TO MAKE SURE
% YOU'RE SWEEPING THAT UP AND
% USING LESS THE NEXT TIME.
% THE SWITCH COMES IN AT COLDER
% TEMPERATURES.
% IF YOU DROP BELOW -- IF THE
% TEMPERATURES DROP BELOW
% 15 DEGREES FAHRENHEIT, SALT IS
% NOT EFFECTIVE ANYMORE SO WE NEED
% TO SWITCH AND USE SAND FOR
% TRACTION OR A DIFFERENT DE-ICER.
% >> THAT IS ALL WE HAVE, ALLISON
% MADISON, THANKS FOR YOUR TIME.
% >> THANK YOU SO MUCH.
% IT WAS A DELIGHT TO BE ON.
% >> FOR MORE ON THIS AND OTHER%
ISSUES FACING WISCONSIN, VISIT
% OUR WEBSITE AT PBSWISCONSIN.ORG