Salt is really powerful when it comes to preventing ice from forming – all you need for a 20-foot driveway is ONE mugful (12 oz) of road salt.
You do not have to feel "the crunch" for salt to do its job. Salt lowers the freezing temperature of water so snow and ice can be more easily removed. Putting more salt on a surface does not make snow and ice melt faster or eliminate the need for plowing or shoveling.
Watch out for deicers labeled as "eco-friendly" or "pet-friendly"! Read the package more closely: If there is chloride in the product (sodium chloride, magnesium chloride, potassium chloride, etc.), it is still a salt!
Start with our template and adapt it for educating YOUR community about the need to reduce salt use!
Looking for guidance on submitting an LTE? Check out the LTE & Op-Ed Guide.
Use these fact sheets to educate your community about road salt pollution.
Use this guide to start a Salt Watch advocacy campaign in your community!
To take action on excessive road salt at your congregation, download our toolkit.
Call your city or county Department of Environmental Protection to report high chloride levels or large salt piles (either piles spilled on the road or uncovered stockpiles). Call your Department of Transportation to ask them to apply less salt on the roads.
Property managers, community leaders, and state agencies might not know where to start in curbing salt use in your area. Share the Road Salt Best Practices compiled from our partners already working to reduce salt use in their regions.
Write to your representatives at the state and local level in support of salt reduction and smarter salt use in your community. You can start with our sample letters – but feel free to personalize them to your own perspective!
We'll send you updates every other month on ways you can take action for better water quality in your community.
Your generous gift will fund Salt Watch kits for new volunteers all over the country and help us work towards road salt reduction strategies nationwide.
The goal of the Salt Watch Chapter Toolkit is to provide Izaak Walton League members with the information and resources necessary to help engage their chapters and their communities in Salt Watch.
Download the Toolkit
Paint the Plow is a community outreach program that encourages groups to work with their local Department of Transportation (DoT) to paint a snowplow blade with original artwork centered around smart road salting practices.
How to Run a Successful Paint the Plow Event
Salt Watch is a registered trademark of the Izaak Walton League of America.