Wood pellets instead of road salt

[kevinjohnsonmbe]

Picked up from a FB post, I thought this was really interesting....  

 

Great to see new trends and progressive environmental protection measures being trialled. Thankfully we don't suffer from too much frost in Cornwall, but it would be interesting to know how many tons are dumped on the roads of Cornwall (and more broadly the UK) each year and what the environmental impact is.

 

This quote is taken from the Smithsonian (Jan 2014 followed up in May 17) so it's certainly not a new line of development:

 

"...Road salt pollution is generally a bigger issue for the surrounding environment and the organisms that live in it. It’s estimated that chloride concentrations above 800 ppm are harmful to most freshwater aquatic organisms - because these high levels interfere with how animals regulate the uptake of salt into their bodies - and for short periods after a snow melt, wetlands nearby highways can surpass these levels. A range of studies has found that chloride from road salt can negatively impact the survival rates of crustaceans, amphibians such as salamanders and frogs, fish, plants and other organisms. There’s even some evidence that it could hasten invasions of non-native plant species..."

Since Cornwall Council has a statutory duty under the Environmental Protection Act 1990 it will be interesting to understand how this activity is not in breach of that Act. It may be that the upfront cost of pellet is more expensive than salt, but that excludes any consideration of the associated environmental harm caused by salt. A true understanding of costs and liabilities would doubtless provide evidence of a cost saving if we were served by any form of open thinking and imagination by our Local Authority.

 

 

[Khriss]

Looks a great idea basically improving traction is what you want and often deicing salt will not work in certain situations , K

[Khriss]

( drains n sewer blocking would be my concern )

[eggsarascal]

5 minutes ago, Khriss said:

( drains n sewer blocking would be my concern )

Just going to say the same thing.

 

"good for the environment", until everything gets blocked and there's flooding all over the place.

[kevinjohnsonmbe]

That's already taken care of by the flail cutting of hedgerows which is left to clog the drains Khriss....  Happens every year just the same.  Last year I brought it to the Highways manager's attention.  

 

His response was that in rural areas it's risk assessed and not worth the effort - he was rather surprised when I pointed out this area which is EA Flood Zone 3.  Apparently that 'trivial detail' hadn't featured in his risk assessment.... 

 

Same again this year.  1 week after the flail comes the heavy rain, then Cormac are out clearing the drains.... Too little too late as usual.

 

The 1 plus side is that since he's not interested in his contractors clearing the highways, I have no issue leaving my debris everywhere now.... 

[kevinjohnsonmbe]

8 minutes ago, eggsarascal said:

Just going to say the same thing.

 

"good for the environment", until everything gets blocked and there's flooding all over the place.

Think about it though Mr E - less than is already left to log the drains and certainly less adverse environmental impact.  Lessr of 2 weevils??

[eggsarascal]

37 minutes ago, kevinjohnsonmbe said:

That's already taken care of by the flail cutting of hedgerows which is left to clog the drains Khriss....  Happens every year just the same.  Last year I brought it to the Highways manager's attention.  

 

His response was that in rural areas it's risk assessed and not worth the effort - he was rather surprised when I pointed out this area which is EA Flood Zone 3.  Apparently that 'trivial detail' hadn't featured in his risk assessment.... 

 

Same again this year.  1 week after the flail comes the heavy rain, then Cormac are out clearing the drains.... Too little too late as usual.

 

The 1 plus side is that since he's not interested in his contractors clearing the highways, I have no issue leaving my debris everywhere now.... 

That's in a rural location!, roads flood in these areas. Gully pots don't get emptied as often as they should, if you're lucky enough to have surface water drains that is.

 

The problem I see is a lot of surface water/sewage is pumped, stuffing 'solids' down drains and into pumps is going to bring the system to a halt. Then the shit it's the streets. Not a good idea IMHO. 

Edited January 28, 2018 by eggsarascal

[kevinjohnsonmbe]

2 minutes ago, eggsarascal said:

That's in a rural location!, roads flood in these areas. Gully pots don't get emptied as often as they should, if you're lucky enough to have surface water drains that is.

 

The problem I see is a lot of surface water/sewage is pumped, stuffing 'solids' down drains and into pumps is going to bring the system to a halt. Then the shit it's the streets. Not a good idea IMHO. 

Yome the man on this subject Mr E.  If you think it would be a problem for drains that's good enough for me.  

 

I wish there was a viable alternative to salt though....  It's going to bite us in the ass at some point. 

[tree77]

Think the idear is good, not sure it would be suited to every location though. Think my concern would be that although it provides traction would some form of de-icing salt be needed still?, there a few different types  of de-icing salts available, some which are more friendly to the environment, potassium acetate I think, please correct if am wrong.

 

[eggsarascal]

3 minutes ago, kevinjohnsonmbe said:

Yome the man on this subject Mr E.  If you think it would be a problem for drains that's good enough for me.  

 

I wish there was a viable alternative to salt though....  It's going to bite us in the ass at some point. 

Road Salt, Sand, Grit is a big problem. There is a huge problem in Newmarket, lots of paths are heavily sanded between race yards and the Gallops, this sand gets washed into the water courses. Not good.

 

I don't know the answer to finding a better solution mind.