Low-Salt Diet

The Low-Salt Diet is a RiverSides' campaign to prevent road salt contamination of rivers, groundwater and drinking water sources, and threats to aquatic and terrestrial biodiversity. Road salt runoff from roadways, parking lots, and storage facilities goes directly into our rivers and lakes via the storm sewer system. Road salt contaminated meltwater flows over the impervious roadways or parking lot surfaces, into a curb catch basin inlet or gutter, into a storm sewer and finally ends up in a nearby creek, river or lake.

A Low-Salt Diet for Ontario's Roads and Rivers provides an overview of road salts use in Canada, the current state of regulation and policy, the ecosystem, socio-economic and health implications, and alternative substances for winter road maintenance, all with the intention of informing the debate concerning our over-reliance on road salts.