Salt Watch Results (2022-2023)

Clean Water

2022-23 Findings

Season 6 of Salt Watch was our biggest year yet! As the Salt Watch community science program spreads across the country, it's also expanding around the year. Read the Season 6 Salt Watch report.

In 2022-2023, volunteers in 24 states (and DC) conducted more than 5,500 chloride tests. Across the country, 7 percent of those results showed chloride levels high enough to be toxic to aquatic life.

Volunteers found high chloride readings in cities like Detroit, Minneapolis, and Washington DC. In cities like Philadelphia, advocacy by Salt Watchers helped communities move towards smarter salting practices, while awareness of the problem grew in places like Pittsburgh; Hartford, CT; and Appleton, WI.

Season 6 kicked off in July 2022, and volunteer scientists immediately got to work, submitting findings from Connecticut, Virginia, Michigan and other states. By late December, volunteers had completed 45 percent more chloride tests than at the same time in the previous year.

By mid-January 2023, clean water advocates in 39 states were pledging to take action on excessive use of road salt. This word cloud reflects the commitments of hundreds of volunteers! (Click for larger version.)

By the end of Season 6, we had new partner groups, amazing volunteers, legislative progress, and some alarmingly high chloride readings.

Below, explore the interactive map of all the results from Season 6. Click on any dot to see more data, or click the double-arrow icon at the top left to see the legend. Then, dive into regional results and success stories from across the country.