Edmonton plans to keep using anti-icing agent on roads this winter

The City of Edmonton plans to keepusing an anti-icing agent to clear streets thiswinter after two years of a pilot project that used calcium chloride on nearly 3,000 kilometresof city roads.

The city released reports Thursday that show the results of the pilot project.Fewer collisions happened in areas where the brine was used, the reports say.

Gord Cebryk, city deputy manager, said the recommended solution is a combination of salt, sand, plowing and blading.

"We're trying to focus on safety," Cebryk told media at city hall Thursday. "Our focus on achieving bare pavement is resulting in safer driving conditions."

• Edmonton's controversial calcium chloride program to continue, council decides

Since 2017, the city has been exploring different combinations with the goal of creating safer roads.

"The best way of achieving bare pavement is through the use of a variety of tools depending on the weather conditions," Cebryk said.

He referenced a study done by the University of Alberta, which shows that during the pilot project collisions went down nearly 20 per cent in areas where the brine was used.

The calcium chloride controversy

Calcium chloride has been controversial with some membersof the public, who believe it rusts vehicles, garages and impacts concrete.

The reports say studies done in 2018 and 2019 found that "salt and brine impacts on asphalt and concrete are minimal."

The city reports include a study on brine corrosionprepared by Corrpro Canada Inc., which said research has been done worldwide to determine the impact of anti-icing and de-icing agents on vehicles and metal infrastructure.

"However, the results of research programs found in literature review havebeen inconsistent," the study said.

A memo leaked to media earlier this year, written in June 2018 by engineers, suggested the city's calcium chloride brine damages roads 20 per cent more than salt alone.

• Anti-icing agent damages Edmonton roads, study shows
• New salt brine on Edmonton's winter roads will rust your ride, warns expert

Coun. Andrew Knack said few people likely know that the city has been using calcium chloride for many years, in different amounts.

He noted the reports show there were fewer collisions on roads where the brine was used during the pilot project.

"I don't know if that's going to matter right now to a lot of people," Knack told CBC News Thursday."There's been so much conversation around what this may or may not be actually doing to private property, to public infrastructure."

In the 2018-2019 season, the amount of calcium chloride the city used was "significantly lower" compared to 2017-2018, while the amount of salt and sand was slightly higher due to extreme weather.

Cebryksaid the city used the brine only twice last winter.

Calcium chloride brine contains a corrosion inhibitor to offset the potential impacts on metal and concrete, Knack said.

"It may not be causing the issue that people think it is. It could be if we assume that there are in fact impacts the level of salt that we use, particularly this last year in comparison to the level of salt the city had used in the past."

The province uses a calcium chloride on highways like Anthony Henday Drive.

• Edmonton hopes to cut back on calcium chloride use on roads this winter

Knack noted that the brine solutionhas made a positive difference at seniors' complexes and on sidewalks.

He said other jurisdictions that use brine have accepted that any impact is "outweighed by the safety benefits."

Councillors are scheduled to discuss the reports and the city's snow and ice policyat a community and public services committee meeting on Sept. 4.

@natashariebe