Last Friday, I had to laugh when I saw the salt going down. The road crews were not going to let previous experience get the best of them this time. I really thought it was a pretty funny over-reaction. I looked at the weather map on my fancy phone and there wasn’t much headed for my Town & Country area. Well I was wrong to laugh, they did the right thing and pretreated for what turned out to be a slick little freezing rain. And once again the Town & Country road crews did an excellent job. Call Craig over at city hall and say thanks, really!
Well, the road prep ended up being not so funny, but you know what was funny; check out this video of the funny Magic man that I shot at cub scouts last week. Abra-Kid-Abra put on a great show and included time to teach the kids the magic tricks. Now that show was something worth laughing about and the kids loved it!
OK, back to the salt. I got to thinking that when I saw all of the salt, not only did I think they jumped the gun, I thought, should we really be putting this stuff into the environment? NO, I do not want to take away your salt! Well maybe I do, but I want to get around safely too. What else can we do? I have said this before; sometimes it is too easy to keep doing the same thing without really thinking, thinking about alternatives.
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The answer to the salt issue just may be…..Beet Juice. is already using it when it treats roads for winter weather. Now really, what do I know about Beet Juice. Not much actually; the first I heard about beet juice was when Chicago began experimenting with it in 2008. The headline I saw read: “Beet Juice Catching On As Eco-Friendly Deicer”. The Beet Juice doesn’t completely replace the salt, but it does help it work more effectively and thereby more efficiently.
Maybe this is just too much to ask, changing the way we have always salted our roads. And maybe/probably this stuff cost more than salt. But when spring comes and I see the potholes and the corrosion on my own driveway, I wonder how much the salt is really costing us. Repairs to the roads, to our cars and even to my home. The salt at my home is causing some deterioration on the bricks that the driveway touches. It is also not so friendly to the flooring in my home. And, from what I have read, not so friendly to your pet’s paws. Yikes!
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Friendly? Eco-Friendly? What does this really mean? In this case, I am imaging pouring salt on my friends, that probably wouldn’t be very friendly. Now how about beet juice, if I pour that on my friends they still may not think I am very friendly but at least they will not corrode and need to be repaired. I bet, though, that your pet will think you are friendlier if you don’t expose them to salty feet. Be friendly and think about asking your city's public works department to make a friendly change. And, let me know what you think.
Finally, it is important in life to laugh and to smile. Laugh with your friends and smile at everyone. Your smile could make a difference in their day. But whatever you do, don’t laugh at the road crew; they are working in extreme conditions with one thing in mind, keeping us safe. I know when I call Craig at Town and Country city hall, I will thank him for a job well done, but I am also going to ask him about beet juice.
*MoDOT officials say they use beet juice in conjuntion with salt when temperatures drop into the 20s because it helps the salt work better.