Ohio
Snowy days often lead to salty streams. Ohio's trying to fix that
Municipal road warriors in Ohio and across the country have increasingly turned to a big weapon in their fight against snow and ice to keep roads safe — salt.
It’s an excellent de-icer. And cheap.
Dayton Public Works maintains 1,700 lane miles of road.
“When we deploy for a full operation, we (prepare) 43 dump trucks. And we’re going to put approximately seven tons of salt on each truck,” said Frederick Stovall, director of the city’s public works department.
Adriana Martinez-Smiley
/
WYSO
But that tool is having a worrisome side effect.
“We’ve been able to see a rising level of chloride and chloride ions that we know are affecting our waterways,” said Anne Vogel, director of the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency.
The Ohio EPA found urban areas have seen the biggest rise in salinity in local waterways.
The Cuyahoga River watershed near Cleveland saw a 37% increase in chloride levels between 2000 and 2018. Samples of groundwater taken from an aquifer in the Cincinnati metro area show a 150% increase in chloride between 1996 and 2018.
The increased levels of salt, if they continue to climb, could eventually affect our water quality.
That’s why a new program seeks to reduce road salt pollution across the state.
Why should we be paying attention to this?
We’re not the only state in the U.S. facing this issue. Since 1975, road salt use in the U.S. has doubled.
A three decade long study from the U.S. Geological Survey found that U.S. groundwater is getting saltier around urban areas in the Northeast and Midwest because of rock salt.
In New York, scientists sampled private wells and discovered a majority exceeded EPA standards for salt in drinking water.
“When you put salt down, it doesn’t just run off of the roadway and into a water body like a stream. It can accumulate in the groundwater and in sediments, which is really bad,” said Vicky Kelly, ecologist with the Cary Institute and lead researcher for that private well study in New York. “It’s really bad because that means that we don’t really know how much is out there.”
The corrosive nature of salt can also have impacts on water infrastructure, causing toxic metals such as lead to leech from pipes. It’s what caused Flint, Michigan’s water to become contaminated.
Kelly and other experts say that even if we stop putting salt down now, there’s no telling how long it will take to filter out.
“It became clear to me that we need to address this issue, and we need to address it right now,” Kelly said.
The new program Ohio leaders proposed
To try to get a handle on this issue, Gov. Mike DeWine and the Ohio EPA announced the H2Ohio Chloride Reduction Grant Program last month.
It will distribute $1 million to municipalities for equipment upgrades to reduce the over-application of salt on roads.
The grant, which is capped at $75,000 per municipality, can be used for things such as purchasing brine mixers and upgrading salt storage facilities.
“Nobody’s saying that we shouldn’t salt our roads in Ohio winters,” Vogel said. “But what we’re talking about is being more efficient and using the best technology available to make sure that we’re efficiently applying the right level of salt to keep us safe.”
Applying a salt brine solution instead of just regular rock salt reduces the amount of salt used and provides a more accurate application.
Adjusting salt storage practices can reduce the chances of salt traveling into the soil and groundwater.
The Ohio Department of Transportation is also working on a public education campaign for local governments on the risks associated with over-salting roads.
ODOT has been using brine for years now. Its brine is made up of 23% salt and 77% tap water.
“All of us who work at the Ohio Department of Transportation live here. We work here, we play here. We raise our families here. It’s important to us that the environment is protected just as much as it is for anybody else,” said Matt Bruning, an ODOT spokesman.
Since the winter of 2018 through 2019, the department’s salt usage per lane mile has decreased from 22 tons to nine tons.
Back in Dayton, Stovall with the city’s public works said they already use brine. But city crews have to travel to the Montgomery County Engineer’s Office to pick it up. That’s not always practical, Stovall said, including during a storm when weather can change quickly.
Through ODOT’s training resource, the city learned about the new H2Ohio program. Stovall said Dayton will pursue a grant to buy a brine mixer and storage tank.
If awarded, he said the city would be happy to share with neighboring communities who may need it.
“That’s kind of what the governor’s focus is — ‘All right, what other resources can we put out there to make sure everybody is prepared to be more environmentally efficient on the streets, but also providing safe streets for everybody to drive on,’” Stovall said. “So I think the more resources that are out there in our region, it’s going to help all of us.”
Ohio
Cleveland.com boys basketball state rankings: Defending champ proving its one of Ohio’s best regardless of division
CLEVELAND, Ohio — While weather conditions put some games in Northeast Ohio on ice, plenty of showdowns took place in the last week across the state.
Lutheran East continued to establish itself as a top program, regardless of division, with its 64-55 win Saturday at Garfield Heights during a Scholastic Play By Play Classic showcase. That event also saw Euclid come away with a 66-51 win vs. Reynoldsburg, which had been ranked in the cleveland.com state rankings.
That has changed since last week, but Lutheran East strengthened its hold atop Division V. Euclid remains one of the top teams in Division II, while Garfield Heights’ positioning in Division III is unaffected this week.
The No. 1-ranked teams in all seven divisions remain in place since last week, including Lakota West in Division I and Lima Senior in Division II.
See how the state stands with the top 10 teams in each of Ohio’s seven divisions for boys basketball. Results and records are based on what has been reported through Tuesday’s games to MaxPreps, which is providing the official RPI ratings for OHSAA postseason seeding.
DIVISION I
1. Lakota West (15-1)
2. Newark (16-0)
3. St. Ignatius (10-5)
4. St. Edward (13-2)
5. Cincinnati Princeton (13-1)
6. Lewis Center Olentangy (15-1)
7. Canton McKinley (13-2)
8. Brunswick (13-3)
9. Hilliard Bradley (14-2)
10. Huber Heights Wayne (12-3)
Also considered: Centerville (10-5), Dublin Coffman (12-3), Kettering Fairmont (10-5), Upper Arlington (11-4).
DIVISION II
1. Lima Senior (10-1)
2. Cincinnati Winton Woods (12-0)
3. Westerville North (11-1)
4. Brecksville-Broadview Heights (14-0)
5. Euclid (11-4)
6. North Canton Hoover (11-4)
7. Massillon Washington (11-1)
8. Toledo St. John’s Jesuit (11-5)
9. Highland (13-2)
10. Solon (9-5)
Also considered: Austintown-Fitch (10-4), North Royalton (10-4), Sunbury Big Walnut (8-5), Toledo St. Francis de Sales (7-5)
DIVISION III
1. Garfield Heights (10-5)
2. Toledo Central Catholic (10-2)
3. Trotwood-Madison (12-1)
4. Columbus Bishop Hartley (11-3)
5. Alliance (14-2)
6. Youngstown Ursuline (12-3)
7. Youngstown Chaney (12-2)
8. Hamilton Badin (13-3)
9. St. Vincent-St. Mary (9-7)
10. Miami Trace (13-2)
Also considered: Akron Garfield (13-3), Cincinnati Archbishop McNicholas (13-4), Cincinnati La Salle (11-4), Columbus Bishop Watterson (11-3), Columbus Centennial (14-3), Defiance (11-4), Lima Shawnee (11-4), Wapakoneta (12-3).
DIVISION IV
1. Maysville (13-1)
2. Cincinnati Wyoming (15-0)
3. Dayton Northridge (15-1)
4. New Concord John Glenn (13-1)
5. Cincinnati Taft (10-3)
6. Canfield (14-2)
7. Sandusky Perkins (15-0)
8. Glenville (10-6)
9. Warrensville Heights (9-5)
10. Van Wert (13-3)
Also considered: Brookside (12-2), Caledonia River Valley (10-5), Circleville (13-2), Kettering Archbishop Alter (10-6), Norton (15-0), Ontario (14-3), Ottawa-Glandorf (10-3), Plain City Jonathan Alder (12-4), Shelby (9-4), Urbana (12-3).
DIVISION V
1. Lutheran East (12-0)
2. Columbus Bishop Ready (12-3)
3. Margaretta (14-2)
4. Columbus Africentric (13-2)
5. Columbus Academy (10-4)
6. Fredericktown (14-0)
7. Canal Winchester Harvest Prep (9-4)
8. Cincinnati North College Hill (15-2)
9. Genoa Area (13-0)
10. Willard (13-2)
Also considered: Chesapeake (14-1), Fairview (10-3), Ironton (13-2), Keystone (13-4), Lewistown Indian Lake (13-2).
DIVISION VI
1. New Madison Tri-Village (15-0)
2. North Robinson Colonel Crawford (12-0)
3. Berlin Hiland (11-3)
4. Monroe Central (13-1)
5. Van Wert Lincolnview (14-2)
6. Columbus Grandview Heights (13-2)
7. Maria Stein Marion Local (12-1)
8. Smithville (13-3)
9. Hamler Patrick Henry (12-3)
10. Kirtland (11-1)
Also considered: Caldwell (11-2), St. Henry (9-3), Toledo Maumee Valley Country Day (10-5).
DIVISION VII
1. Delphos St. John’s (15-0)
2. Botkins (11-2)
3. Sidney Lehman Catholic (13-3)
4. Miami Valley Christian Academy (13-3)
5. McDonald (16-0)
6. Miller City (13-3)
7. Fairport Harding (12-1)
8. Arlington (13-3)
9. Montpelier (13-2)
10. Cedarville (13-2)
Also considered: Sandusky St. Mary (12-2)
WASHINGTON (TNND) — A Democrat candidate running for Ohio Attorney General shared in a video posted on social media that he was going to “kill Donald Trump” by executing him.
In a 40 second video, Elliot Forhan explained a hypothetical scenario in which he tries and successfully convicts President Trump, who would be sentenced to death.
“I want to tell you what I mean when I say that I am going to kill Donald Trump,” Forhan said.
“I mean, I’m going to obtain a conviction rendered by a jury of his peers at a standard of proof beyond a reasonable doubt based on evidence presented at a trial conducted in accordance with the requirements of due process, resulting in a sentence duly executed of capital punishment.”
The one-term state representative didn’t explain what crimes Trump had allegedly committed that would be worthy of the death penalty in the video.
Forhan’s video garnered a fierce rebuke from Republican leadership in Ohio such as State Auditor Keith Faber, who is also running for state attorney general but on the Republican ticket.
“That kind of vile comment makes it clear that Elliot Forhan is not qualified to be attorney general,” Forhan said in a video statement.
He also called on Democratic gubernatorial candidate Amy Acton to reject Forhan’s rhetoric, but she has yet to address it publicly.
Former state Rep. Jay Edwards, now a Republican running for Ohio treasurer, said Forhan’s video “fits his pattern” of seeking to cause harm to his political opponents.
“He posted “F*** Charlie Kirk” days after his assassination, has a history of rage and now openly fantasizes about executing the President,” Edwards wrote on X.
In 2023, Democratic Party leadership removed Forhan from all of his committee assignments and access to an office because of his abusive behavior toward staff and colleagues.
“I am going to kill Donald Trump”—dressed up in legal jargon about trials and capital punishment,” Edwards wrote. “This isn’t clever; it’s a deranged fantasy from someone seeking Ohio’s top law enforcement role.”
The National News Desk reached out to Forhan for comment.
Ohio
Northeast Ohio school closures for Wednesday, Jan. 28, 2026; Cleveland School District plans to resume classes
CLEVELAND, Ohio — Cleveland Metropolitan School District is going to give it a try Wednesday.
The city’s school district posted a message on its website Tuesday night that it intends to resume classes Wednesday. However, the message says the district intends to monitor weather conditions overnight.
Temperatures are expected to go as low as minus-3 degrees with wind chills at minus-15, according to the National Weather Service. The predicted temperature at 7 a.m. is 1 degree with wind chills at minus-11. A cold weather advisory is in effect until 11 a.m. Wednesday.
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That’s led dozens of districts to already cancel classes for Wednesday, including Akron Public Schools, Avon Lake City Schools, Elyria City Schools, Lorain City Schools, Medina City Schools and Strongsville City Schools.
Below is a list of closures and delays for Wednesday, Jan. 28. For a more complete list that includes day cares, preschools, Head Start programs and church programs, go to the list from cleveland.com/The Plain Dealer news partner WKYC Channel 3.
Academy of St. Bartholomew
Akron Public Schools
Albert Einstein Academy (all campuses)
Amherst Exempted Village Schools
Archbishop Hoban High School
Around the Sun Montessori School
Ashtabula Area City Schools
Ashtabula County Tech Campus
Avon Lake City Schools
Avon Local Schools
Barberton City Schools
Berea City Schools
Bethel Baptist Christian Academy
Black River Career Prep High School
Brooklyn City Schools
Brunswick City Schools
Buckeye Joint Vocational School District
Buckeye Local Schools (Ashtabula County)
Buckeye Local Schools (Medina County)
Building Bridges
C.A.S.T.L.E High School (Parma)
Cascade Career Prep
Central Christian School
Chapel Hill Christian School, North and South
Chippewa Local Schools
Christian Community School
Cleveland Arts & Social Sciences Academy
Clearview Local Schools
Cleveland Central Catholic High School
Cleveland Shambhala Center
Cleveland Sports Academy
Cloverleaf Local Schools
Community Action Head Start (Akron, Barberton)
Conneaut Area City Schools
Constellation School Westpark Community Elementary
Constellation Schools Stockyard Community Middle
Constellation Schools Eastside Arts Academy
Constellation Schools Elyria Community Elementary
Constellation Schools Elyria Community Middle
Constellation Schools Lorain Community Elementary
Constellation Schools Lorain Community Middle
Constellation Schools Madison Community Elementary
Constellation Schools Old Brooklyn Community Middle
Constellation Schools Old Brooklyn Community Elementary
Constellation Schools Parma Community Elementary
Constellation Schools Parma Community Middle
Constellation Schools Parma Community High School
Constellation Schools Parma Community Intermediate
Constellation Schools Puritas Community Elementary
Constellation Schools Puritas Community Middle
Constellation Schools Stockyard Community Elementary
Constellation Schools Westpark Community Middle
Constellation Schools Westside Community School of Arts
Constellation Schools Pearl Road Elementary
Copley Fairlawn City Schools
Cornerstone Community School
Corpus Christi Academy
Coventry Local Schools
Crestwood Local Schools
Cuyahoga Falls City Schools
Dale Roy School
Education Alternatives (Bedford, Brook Park, Elyria, Ravenna, Springfield, Willoughby)
EHOVE Career Center (two-hour delay)
Elyria Catholic High School
Elyria City Schools
Fairlawn Lutheran School
Fairview Park City Schools
Field Local Schools
Geneva Area City Schools
Ginn-Thompson School for Girls
Global Ambassadors Language Academy
Global Village Academy
Gospel Haven Academy (two-hour delay)
Grand Valley Local Schools
GSCELC SCOPE Academy
Hametown Christian Academy
Happy Hearts
Hartville Christian School
Highland Local Schools
Hiram College
Holy Cross Lutheran School
Holy Family (Stow)
Holy Name High School
Horizon Science Academy Denison Middle, Cleveland Middle, High School
I.D.M.R. Akron
Imagine Bella Academy
Immaculate Heart (Cuyahoga Falls)
Incarnate Word Academy Elementary
Innovation Academy West
Insightful Minds
Jefferson Area Local Schools
Kent City Schools
KidsLink School
Kingsway Christian School
Lake Center Christian Schools
Lake Ridge Academy
Lawrence School (Lower, Upper)
Lincoln Park Academy
Lorain City Schools
Lorain Preparatory School
Magnificat High School
Maplewood Career Center
Mayfair Christian School
Medina Christian Academy
Medina City Schools
Medina County Career Center
Midview Local Schools
Mogadore Local Schools
Monroe Preparatory Academy
Noble Academy (Cleveland)
Nordonia Hills City Schools
North Olmsted City Schools
North Ridgeville City Schools
North Royalton City Schools
Northside Christian Academy
Olmsted Falls City Schools
Open Door Christian Schools
Orchard Park Academy (Akron)
Our Lady of Angels Elementary
Our Lady of Elms (all closed)
Padua Franciscan High School
Parma City Schools
Parma Heights Christian Academy
Pathways to Success
Portage Learning Center (Atwater, Kent, Ravenna, Streetsboro)
Positive Education Program
Pymatuning Valley Local Schools
R G Drage Career Center
Ramah Junior Academy
Ravenna School District
Redeemer Christian Elementary
Regina Coeli-St. Joseph
Revere Local Schools
Rising Sun Centers
Royal Redeemer Lutheran
S.U.P.E.R. Learning Center
Seton Catholic School
Sheffield-Sheffield Lake City Schools
Southeast Local Schools (Portage County)
Springfield Local Schools (Summit County)
SS Philip and James School (Canal Fulton)
St. Adalbert (Cleveland)
St. Albert the Great Elementary
St. Angela Merici.
St. Anthony of Padua (Akron, Lorain, Parma)
St. Augustine (Barberton)
St. Charles Borromeo School
St. Columbkille Elementary
St. John Lutheran (Cleveland)
St. John School (Ashtabula)
St. Joseph-Randolph
St. Jude Elementary (Elyria)
St. Leo The Great (Cleveland)
St. Mary Elementary (Elyria)
St. Mary Immaculate (Avon)
St. Mary (Akron)
St. Mary (Berea)
St. Michael Archangel
St. Patrick Elementary (Kent)
St. Paul Lutheran (Westlake)
St. Peter Elementary (Lorain)
St. Peter (North Ridgeville)
St. Sebastian Elementary
St. Stanislaus Elementary
St. Thomas More Elementary
St. Vincent-St. Mary High School (two-hour delay)
STEAM Academy (Warrensville)
STEPS Academy
Stepstone Academy
Stow-Munroe Falls City Schools
Streetsboro City Schools
Strongsville City Schools
Sts. Joseph and John (Strongsville)
Summit Academy Elementary (Akron, Lorain)
Summit Academy (Akron Middle, Secondary)
Summit Academy-Akron Secondary
Summit Christian School
Tallmadge City Schools
The Golden Key School
The Lippman School
Urban Vision (Akron)
Wadsworth City Schools
Warrensville Heights City Schools
Washington Park Community School
Windfall School
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