UPDATE: Midwest Salt at SIMA 2019

Barge of bulk rock salt

Tony Johnson, Owner of Midwest Salt, contributed to a discussion at SIMA 2019 about salt availability and how the salt market works and what suppliers do to avoid a salt shortage. As a veteran salt supplier, Tony explained the salt supply chain from mine to truck spreader and every salt logistics aspect in between that… Read more »

Responsible Industrial Chloride Use

Sodium chloride, commonly known as salt, is one of the most abundant minerals on the planet.  Salt possesses major economic importance because of its usefulness beyond flavoring and preserving food.  In fact, according to the February 2019 U.S. Geological Survey, of the 42 million tons of domestic salt produced in 2018 only 6% of salt… Read more »

Tony Johnson of Midwest Salt at SIMA 2019

Barge of bulk rock salt

The President and CEO of Midwest Salt, Tony Johnson will be a part of the SIMA 2019 Salt Supply & Procurement Panel. Tony will be sharing ideas that will impact the snow and ice management industry and how it can manage it’s salt supply chain. Tony will be joined by: Moderator: Phill Sexton, WIT Advisers;… Read more »

Winter ’18-’19, Is This a Salt Shortage?

When the snow and the ice arrives there is one tried and true way to keep travelers safe – salting the roads.  There is no more effective means to melting away icy conditions than salt.  The problem facing those in charge of protecting drivers during this long winter of 2018-19 is a shortage in road… Read more »

Applying MORE Salt Isn’t Always Better

snow on the walkways

When salt comes into contact with water it lowers the water’s freezing point.  Because of this property, salt will always be a crucial component in ice melt application.  In wintry conditions, businesses strive to keep their customers safe outside their storefronts by eliminating ice and the possibility of slips and falls.  To decrease the chances… Read more »

Weather Changes and Impacts on Our Industry

Snowy Road

According to scientists worldwide, climate change is happening now. The cause or causes are still to being examined and debated. The EPA conducted studies based in regions in the US and how the future weather patterns will affect each area. They cover the area overview, Impacts on Human Health, Impacts on Water Resources, Impacts on… Read more »

The Best Study on Ice melt You Will Find

NCHRP NATIONAL COOPERATIVE HIGHWAY RESEARCH  PROGRAM REPORT 577 Guidelines for the Selection of Snow and Ice Control Materials to Mitigate Environmental Impacts This study from 2007 was an outstanding work. It rings true today as the standard for ice management hasn’t changed much in the last few decades, although the new wave of techniques and technology is… Read more »

Staggering cost of salt use

Bulk salt is a stable in winter snow and ice control. Recent studies have examined the real cost of salt use for winter maintenance. Here we reference a presentation for the Road Salt Symposium by Carolyn Dindorf of Fortin Consulting, Inc. The study focused on data from Minnesota’s Government and Private costs via St. Anthony… Read more »

DuPage River Salt Creek Workgroup Newsletter

National APWA Excellence in Snow & Ice Award Winner Village of Buffalo Grove After their annual review, the Village of Buffalo Grove Public Works Department revised their winter maintenance plan for 2014 – 2015 to achieve the highest level of service possible at the lowest possible cost. The new plan was created by a team… Read more »

Winter Maintenance For Small Sites

Winter maintenance operations have many similarities between small and large sites. This video will highlight ways to maximize results while minimizing effort and chloride pollution from salt and ice melters.

Salt Usage Tips To Help Protect Your Local Watershed

The Mississippi WMO (Watershed Management Organization) put together a great, educational video about the how and why chlorides are harmful and how to be responsible with salt usage. While this video is geared towards the small scale of residential application, it can certainly be scaled up to match your large commercial jobs. After all, a… Read more »

Dangerously Salty Fresh Water? It Is Happening.

There is no denying the urban sprawl in America is spreading. Researchers found startling data in freshwater lakes of the Northern United Sates. Too many chlorides in salt can do damage to many areas of life, from killing off plants and trees or stunting reproduction of beneficial animal to environmental catastrophes like Flint, Michigan. Researchers… Read more »

Learn To Reduce Chloride Emissions – Chloride Conscious

Midwest Salt has sponsored ChlorideConscious.com to help their chloride reduction movement. They aim to reduce chloride emissions from snow and ice management by giving a free collection of data and articles on how to use chlorides more efficiently. We recognize a problem with chlorides damaging waterways and the environmental impacts this causes. There are numerous studies that document… Read more »

Science and the Art of Ice Melt

NILES HYSELL:September 19, 2011 How does one know which ice melt products to use, when to use it, and how much to apply? Morton Salt and Michigan Technological University conducted an experiment to answer these questions. They analyzed and measured the effectiveness of the most commonly used ice melters in both the laboratory and in… Read more »

Be Prepared for the Snow

Stockpiling road salt is the most important advice when dealing with harsh winters.  The Salt Institute encourages keeping one year’s worth of salt on hand before the snow arrives. Having a year’s worth of salt ordered at once can help you secure the best pricing available and protects you from shortages do to logistics problems. When… Read more »

Join Us At The SIMA Show June 24-27

  The 2015 SIMA show is being held at the Schaumburg Convention Center in Schaumburg, Illinois. Please join us on June 24th-27th at the show. You can register to attend here. Please come see us at our booth number 737 in the center rear of the expo floor. We deliver bulk loads from truckloads to full ocean vessels in the… Read more »

Cutting Down On Salt Usage

Snowy Road

Chloride emissions are a real threat to our environment. This article By Mike Lynch, discusses the problems and the efforts being used in Upstate New York to combat the rising chloride levels in the local water supply. Salt in fresh water is diluted in the rainy months but not at a rate higher than is… Read more »