Road salt prices expected to double after record-breaking winter.
With road salt expected to double in price, Athens city and county officials alike are hoping for a winter unlike last year’s — which left workers scrambling to dissolve icy roads and sidewalks.
Last year, the state needed to use more than one million tons of salt — a record-breaking total, said Steve Faulkner, spokesman for the Ohio Department of Transportation.
A typical winter in the city of Athens usually requires about a thousand tons of salt, said Andy Stone, city engineer and director of public works.
But Stone said last winter was far from typical, leading the city to lay more than 1,500 tons on roads to combat record-breaking temperature lows and dangerous ice.
“We bid once a year,” Stone said. “Although, this past year we exhausted our initial bid amount, that’s why the price went up.”
Last winter’s salt supply was purchased at $58 per ton, Stone said, but he added that by spring, when they purchased about 1,000 tons of salt, that price had increased to $65.
That cycle may soon start again. Stone said the city is now preparing bids for their winter contract with either Morton or Cargill Salt and he’s bracing the city for another hit to its checkbook.
“I would not be surprised if it’s over $100 per ton,” Stone said, adding that he wasn’t sure why prices have spiked so much.
Athens can stock about 1,000 tons of salt at a time in a storage facility that’s currently full, and he said the city will definitely make it to January before having to restock.
Athens County officials are also making preparations for the upcoming winter.
The county is looking for bids to build two new concrete storage buildings, each capable of holding 3,000 tons of salt, though Athens County Engineer Jeff Maiden said last winter the county typically uses 2,000 tons of salt per winter. The county has estimated the structures would cost $530,000.
Maiden was unable to be reached for comment for this article.
Though many Ohio counties purchase their salt in accordance with ODOT, Athens County purchases individually. Faulkner said that ODOT’s winter contract for road salt has already been confirmed at $85 per ton.
@alexmacleo7
am892313@ohio.edu
