Monday, February 06, 2006

Construction of New Salt Shed

The City of Grande Prairie has constructed a state of the art salt and winter abrasive storage facility. It addresses increasing environmental concerns over the use and proper handling of road salt by road authorities. 

An engineered asphalt pad with an impermeable neoprene liner imbedded in the base underneath was built.  The design ensures any salt brine is intercepted and contained in a large sump tank that can be pumped out. The brine can be reutilized by maintenance personnel.  Use of the plastic honeycomb blocks for this purpose is a first in Alberta.  Preventing salt from entering the ground water at a storage location is very important because of the high concentrations that could build up over the life of the facility.  The City is now equipped to meet Environment Canada’s standards for the foreseeable future.