Road salt supplies in Starke County should last until the weather warms.
That’s according to Starke County Highway Superintendent Rik Ritzler. He says at the current rate of usage, road salt should last through March. This cycle, no road salt was used in November and December.
Ritzler says this month’s usage has been heavy.
“This February, we’ve used at least as much as we did last February,” says Ritzler. “We’re on pace for a heavy winter in February for usage, a heavy usage. But because we had those first few months that weren’t so bad, we’re a little ahead of the game.”
Despite February’s usage, Starke County expects to use between 500 and 600 fewer tons of road salt compared to the previous year.
The Highway Department says they’ve tried to focus on the main roads and school route.
1,200 tons of salt was ordered on contract for this winter cycle. Ritzler says that if new salt is needed, it will probably be ordered in the next couple of weeks.
Ritzler says any salt not used during this cold weather cycle could potentially be rolled over into the next year’s usage.
“Two years ago we had a full salt-shed full for the next winter, last year, we pretty much used everything, this year we’re hoping to have a little bit of a reserve left and that really helps us as the year goes on,” says Ritzler.
1,200 tons of salt was ordered on contract for this winter cycle. Ritzler says that if new salt is needed, it will probably be ordered in the next couple of weeks.
