Highway Department Finds ‘One For The Road’ Is Not Always A Disastrous Mix

By John Voket

Newtown is among the many towns in the region that is increasingly using a road salt mixture treated with vodka and beer derivatives to better protect winter drivers on town roads, as well as the local environment.

The treatment, commonly referred to among highway and public works professionals as “Magic Salt” was recently discussed at Newtown Board of Selectmen and Finance Board meetings. The subject of the Magic Salt was introduced when a normally routine $50,000 transfer to the Highway Department was shepherded through the local approval processes.

First Selectman Herb Rosenthal first discussed the treatment more than a year ago, when he learned about it during a national conference he attended as a representative to the Connecticut Conference of Municipalities. At the time, the first selectman mentioned that the process was being used on roadways and bridges adjacent to environmentally sensitive areas where conventional chemical melting agents were either prohibited or discouraged.

But more recently, Mr Rosenthal told his fellow selectman William Brimmer and finance board members, the Town of Bridgewater participated in a pilot program to test the effectiveness of the substance while diminishing or eliminating the use of road sand.

“The Magic Salt is road salt treated with a beer or vodka byproduct which comes from the distilling process,” Mr Rosenthal said. “It’s less corrosive to vehicles and the roadways, and is more environmentally friendly.”

Public Works Director Fred Hurley said although cost of the treated salt has dropped more than 300 percent over the past three years, it is still more expensive than the mixture of sand and salt his workers were spreading as recently as last weekend. If his trucks previously went out with a six-to-one sand/salt mixture, the rough cost would be $110 per load. But with a 50/50 mixture of sand and treated salt, each truckload now costs about $245.

“Ultimately the public will have to decide if the cost is worth it,” Mr Hurley said.

Mr Hurley said Magic Salt is not an ultimate solution because the series of microclimates in town created by diverse elevations sometimes makes it impractical to use treated salt everywhere at the same time.

“We’re still experimenting with different levels of mixture, using it at different times during the storm,” he said. “There’s still a need to balance and mix material treatments on town roads.”

Mr Hurley and Mr Rosenthal agree that the roads are safer because Magic Salt helps clear the roads faster and often prevents refreezing, and the public is taking notice.

“The Highway Department got more positive calls from residents after this past storm, than they have gotten in some time,” Mr Rosenthal said.

“The fact that we can get down to bare roads is a service, although the salt is not inexpensive,” Mr Hurley added.

The first selectman and public works director pointed out that while conventional road salt works effectively to about 15 degrees, the Magic Salt is effective to temperatures down to five degrees below zero (Fahrenheit). Mr Rosenthal also said that depending on which derivative is used, the salt can be applied before precipitation falls as a pretreatment, or after snow or ice coats the roadways.

“We’ve seen roads where we’ve tested it melt down to slush that we can push right off while other roads still have packed snow or ice on them,” he said. “It works especially well once the sun hits it.”

Besides the obvious safety and environmental benefits, the reduced use of sand, or the complete elimination of it in certain communities, the first selectman said using Magic Salt as an alternative spread can save highway workers countless hours sweeping sand off roadways come spring, as well as the time-consuming chore of declogging catch basins and other drainage systems choked with road sand runoff.

Mr Hurley also provided evidence of other types of savings. He said crews accrued less overtime during the recent nor’easter because roads become bare earlier.

“It’s avoided cost — we’re convinced there is savings,” he said. “Sunday evening the crews were able to go home earlier because the treated salt helped clear the roads.

“And you won’t have as much debris,” he said. “The town will still have to clean the drains but it should go faster. Last year it was almost September before we finished clearing the previous winter’s sand. This year, because we’re using so much Magic Salt, we hope to go to no later than the Fourth of July.”

Finance board member Harrison Waterbury told The Bee following Tuesday’s meeting that he recalled as a teen having to work with a crew of 20 “all summer long,” sweeping and removing winter sand from the streets in his hometown of Fairfield. Mr Waterbury said he believes there is a legitimate cost/value relationship by increasing the use of the treated salt now and diminishing labor expenditures later.

A reference to the mixture found at treehugger.com states that the distillation byproduct makes road salt sticky so that passing cars will not brush it all to the sides, which means less wasted salt.

Another online source indicated that the treatment idea was first developed by an Eastern European scientist at a vodka factory. Deep into a Hungarian winter, the chemist noticed a startling sight; the pond behind the distillery, where the sugary, leftover swill from the factory had collected, never froze.

The chemist figured out how to turn the mash into potent syrup that could be poured over rock salt to fight off icy roads — and Magic Salt was born. The site stated that at least 25 towns in Massachusetts, as well as some colleges and hospitals, are spreading roads with Magic Salt, which is obtained from a supplier in Upstate New York that formulates the treatment from the leftover mash of alcohol distilleries.

Gordon College in Wenham began spraying its campus roads with Magic Salt last year. Although the college spent about the same amount as it did on regular rock salt, the roads were less slippery, said Paul Helgesen, director of physical plant operations. A call to Mr Helgesen to confirm the Internet reference was not immediately returned.

While Board of Finance members joked for a few moments as the subject was discussed, the board eventually approved the transfer of $50,000 to the Highway Department to cover the cost of obtaining more Magic Salt. Town Finance Director Ben Spragg reported that through the end of January, the highway workers had dispatched $68,000 of the $100,000 worth of sand obtained for this winter’s use.