Environment and Climate Change Canada says it does not know to what extent road salt, an all-Canadian contaminant, is causing ecological damage in Canada.
Federal researchers estimate it poses a greater environmental threat than fracking, though tonnes of it are used yearly in Ontario and Québec, according to Blacklock’s Reporter.
“Salt application for de-icing purposes has been recognized as a major source of contamination,” said a department report. “There is still room for improvement.”
In 1995, the Environment Department placed road salt on a “priority substance list.” It did not, however, list the ubiquitous mineral as being toxic, although federal research undertaken in 2001 concluded salt did pose a risk to “plants, animals, birds, fish and lake stream ecosystems and groundwater.”…