County out of road salt; beet juice & pickle brine unlikely substitutes

County Engineer Brian Otten reported that Perry County has used 500 tons of salt since the beginning of winter. There is a state-wide salt shortage.

Last fall, the county had 300 tons of salt on site at the Highway Department, 75 tons that had not yet been delivered from Cargill the previous year and a total of 125 tons available through an IDOT program. All of that has been used.

"We also had a full bin of salt and cinder mix," Otten said. "Normally, it would have been enough for at least two winters."

The IDOT vendor that supplies Perry County will not provide any more salt this winter and the other three vendors are not taking new clients. Otten said he doesn't know if that will change once Chicago receives all of their salt shipments, some of which are stuck in ice on a river. He said he has begun research on salt alternatives. Some communities use beet juice or left-over pickle brine. However, Perry County is not set up to apply a liquid of that nature. It is something to consider for the future.