Funding is now available to reduce pollution.

OHIO — Gov. Mike DeWine has teamed up with the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to distribute funding to help communities to help improve road salt storage and distribution practices. 

The H2Ohio Chloride Reduction Grant Program will give $1 million to local municipalities for upgrades to help prevent the over application of salt on roadways and to reduce the amount of runoff in Ohio’s streams, lakes and rivers. 

“Road salt plays an incredibly important role in road safety, but we must also consider the impact of this salt on the quality of Ohio’s water,” said Gov. DeWine. “This program will help local communities apply salt in a way that effectively treats slippery roads while also reducing the amount of salt that runs off the roads and into the water.” 

According to the Ohio EPA, heavy salt runoff is toxic to aquatic life and can also pollute drinking water sources, leading to higher treatment costs and infrastructure corrosion. 

“This is what H2Ohio is all about,” said Director Vogel. “This is why Gov. DeWine started this program four years ago. It’s connecting hometowns all over Ohio with no-strings-attached funding that will then be used to make communities stronger, safer, and healthier.” 

The Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT) will support the Ohio EPA to educate the local government on the overapplication of salt. This will encourage the use of better practices and the use of the best technology. 

The new solution is made up of 23% salt and 77% tap water, allowing the salt to be applied more precisely and efficiently. Traditional rock salt tends to scatter or get plowed off the side of the roadway. Since the winter of 2018-2019, ODOT’s salt usage per lane mile has dropped from 22.5 tons to 9.37 tons, a decrease of 240%.

For more information on the H2Ohio initiative, visit h2.ohio.gov.