Ice Melt Use Causes Environmental Concerns

With all the snow this winter, people are melting snow at all costs

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By Lauren Maxwell
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Story Created: Feb 1, 2012 at 6:44 PM AKDT

Story Updated: Feb 1, 2012 at 7:37 PM AKDT

Anchorage residents are dealing with this winter’s heavy snow anyway they can.

They are shoveling, blowing and trucking it away to massive snow dump mountains that won’t be melting any time soon.

But many Anchorage residents are using another product that has environmentalists concerned – ice melt.

Cherie Northon, director of the Anchorage Waterways Council, said the big melt-off sure to come this spring will go directly into storm drains that empty into local creeks.

The untreated water will contain chemicals used for melting ice and snow.

“If we know it's not good for humans and it's not good for pets it's not going to be good for fish," says Northon. “It changes the water chemistry and it can impact them negatively.”

Northon said people who must use ice melt should do so sparingly and be aware that some types are safer for waterways than others.

Products that contain magnesium chloride instead of potassium chloride are considered better for creeks, but Northon warns those same products may not be safe for pets – consumers should read labels very carefully.

 

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michelle said on Wednesday, Feb 1 at 9:17 PM

Tell that to whoever is running JBER. They want it scraped to the concrete.

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