One local municipality is reaching out to residents as they try to plan around a province-wide shortage of road salt.
Renfrew’s Director of Public Works Andrea Bishop says the town’s plow team is watching closely as salt suppliers in Ontario warn of growing struggles to meet demand thanks to a higher-than-usual need in larger communities south of the Ottawa Valley.
Bishop says that the town is managing its stockpile of road salt carefully and that they are still receiving orders from Ontario’s biggest producer, but they are also warning residents ahead of time that plowing efforts on some secondary roads may leave behind slick, compacted snow and icy patches should the local forecast turn for the worse.
Road crews will continue to make the most of the resources that are available, but drivers and pedestrians are reminded that less road salt means that roads will stay slippery for longer, particularly during colder stretches of weather.
Bishop says residents can help maintain road conditions by allowing local plows space to work and by not pushing snow from their personal property onto the street.
(written by Kasey Egan)
