700 tons should suffice
Road salt prices have been increasing, but county highway departments say they’ve got enough salt and sand stocked for the winter seasonBy Deb Gau
Each winter, there are always a couple of "ifs" for Minnesota street and highway departments to figure out. One is how severe the winter weather could be, and another is how much road salt and sand will be needed to help keep the roads clear.
While there have been concerns voiced nationally about road salt price increases and the possibility of shortages, area county officials said this week their supplies of salt and sand should be adequate for the winter.
"I think we're sitting pretty good right now," said Lyon County superintendent of highways Jim Thomasson. "We're sitting on 700 tons."
Several factors can affect the price and availability of road salt. Earlier this fall the Associated Press reported that harsh storms last winter created higher demand for road salt and decreased supplies - a trend that could still continue this year. Rising fuel costs also make it more expensive to deliver the salt.
Thomasson said he hadn't heard of any salt or sand shortages in the region, but was concerned this year when two of the suppliers from which Lyon County receives salt bids said they already sold their supply for the season.
"I think last year there was a lot of snow and ice in parts of the Southeast, so there would be greater demand," Thomasson said. The rising price of oil translated into higher salt costs, too. Much of the road salt Lyon County uses for its salt sand mixture is trucked in from states south of Minnesota.
"Prices were up considerably from last year," he said. "It went from $45 a ton to $65 a ton."
Thomasson said the county has about 300 miles of roadway under its responsibility for snow and ice removal. In addition, several cities purchase their road salt and sand from the county.
Marshall gets its sand from the county, but buys its own road salt. Getting enough for the winter hasn't been a problem this year, said Ron Meulebroeck, assistant superintendent of public works in Marshall.
"We just got our last load in," Meulebroeck said Friday. One of the important factors in purchasing road salt is to get bids in early, he said. "Every year we get bids from five different people," Meulebroeck said.
The situation was similar for other area counties. Most receive bids from several different salt suppliers each year. Orders are placed based on past years' needs, and whether any salt or sand is left over from the previous season. Counties can also share salt supplies or storage with the state.
"We're stocked up for what we want to be at," said Yellow Medicine County engineer Andy Sander. Sander said the county didn't have any difficulty getting salt, because they generally try to get bids early, when there's less competition for salt.
Prices were up this year, Sander said, but he wasn't surprised.
"Prices are up on everything," he said. "I don't know if we're paying for the price of the salt or the price to get it from Utah to Yellow Medicine County."
Randy Groves, Murray County engineer, said he hasn't been following the price of salt for this winter because of leftover inventory from last year.
Groves said Murray County has a shared highway station with the Minnesota Department of Transportation and they share the salt and sand piles.
"(MnDOT) used most of the salt and sand from last year that we had contracted for," said Groves. "They will help cover what we need to use this year."
Lee Amundson, Lincoln County engineer, said there has been a significant price increase in salt and sand for this winter.
Amundson said the county had some leftover inventory from last season that will help this year.
Amundson said and other county officials said it's difficult to budget for salt and sand each year because weather conditions are hard to predict months in advance.
The mild weather in November has been a plus for Marshall streets, Meulebroeck said, but conditions can always change.
"The weather's been nice this month, but next month could make up for it. There's still December, January and February," he said.
