Moncton looks at changing salt mines after mineral from Saint John area not quite ‘up to snuff’

It’s all hands on deck as city crews clear away what they can before freezing rain and snow pelts Moncton and its surrounding areas over the weekend.

In an effort to combat Mother Nature, city officials will be using a different road salt supply out of Pugwash, N.S., following calls and complaints on social media about the city’s previous salt, which came from a mine in the Saint John area.

“For some odd reason, it doesn’t seem to be as effective on our streets,” explained Isabelle LeBlanc, a spokesperson for the city.

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "For some odd reason, it doesn't seem to be as effective on our streets," explained Isabelle LeBlanc, a spokesperson for the city.

Public works crews are studying how salt from the first source was reacting on streets and sidewalks. They have been testing moisture levels, checking to see if it clumped easily, and examining how it worked in the spinners used to disburse the mineral.

“All that we know is that our experienced operators that have been on the job 20-plus years did notice that it wasn’t reacting, wasn’t performing as what they had noticed in past years,” LeBlanc said.

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It wasn’t just operators taking notice that the product wasn’t working. Many residents raised their concerns with local councillors and online.

“Terrible, except Main Street. Main Street is excellent because they put a lot of salt, and there’s a lot of traffic,” said local resident Carol Ermen, as she waited for a bus on Main Street.

After the Sussex mine closed last year, municipalities depending on that source had to go elsewhere. Moncton chose a mine in the Saint John area, but that could change depending on the trial run with the mine in Pugwash.

“I guess sometimes if the supply isn’t what you want it to be, you look for other supplies that may give you better results,” said city Coun. Greg Turner.

In the past three weeks, the city says it used 25 per cent of the salt it has for 2018.

Residents, city staff and councillors will have an opportunity to talk salt on Monday night during a public council meeting at Moncton City Hall.