The manner in which Carbondale maintains its road salt reserves will see elaborate improvements this year as Carbondale City Council members await approval of a construction contract for a new storage facility, which may cost upwards of $90,000.

The Council voted 3-2 Jan. 20 in favor of appropriating funds to award a construction contract to the lowest qualified bidder. Councilman Larry Skip Briggs and John Budslick opposed the appropriation, and Briggs said the facility costs too much money.

Money for the contract will come from Carbondale’s Motor Fuel Tax. The tax is a per capita tax collected from gasoline revenues generated within the city.

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Carbondale stores its 600-ton salt reserve under two heavy tarps on a maintenance yard floor made of cement and gravel. The large reserve ensures that enough salt is available to Carbondale during inclement weather, mostly during winter months.

Adverse weather that affects safe highway travel in town also diminishes the mound of salt at 212 W. Willow St. Exposure to freezing weather results in a process called salt crusting, which occurs when upper layers of the salt mound freeze and become useless for thawing highway ice.

At $30 a ton, public works director Ed Reeder proposed that Carbondale store its salt in an enclosed facility. Reeder said a salt storage facility would save Carbondale as much as $5,400 annually.

Salt stored outdoors loses 15 to 30 percent of its mass because of weathering, according to a report issued by the American Salt Institute.

After reviewing the savings data provided through a report issued by Reeder, the savings to Carbondale were not enough to justify purchasing the Cadillac of storage facilities, Briggs said.

The city needs to be focusing on things that need done now instead of trying to read down the road, Briggs said.

Tighter Environmental Protection Agency regulations could find Carbondale in violation of water standards from potential salt run-off, Carbondale City Engineer Larry Miles said.

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Storing a large quantity of salt [outdoors] could pose a problem, Miles said. It is a concern to the city if the EPA gets more strict about water quality standards.

Maintaining a facility would put Carbondale into complete compliance with EPA water standards. Problems arise when large quantities of salt enter city storm sewers.

The amount of salt now entering city storm sewers is not enough to warrant any sort of action on the part of the IEPA, said Larry Zimba, the regional manager of the IEPA Bureau of Water.

Zimba said the way that Carbondale stores its salt is not regulated by the IEPA.

Certainly, salinity in storm drains could pose threats to certain aquatic species possibly even drinking water, but it would have to occur in large quantities, Zimba said.

The Marion branch of the IEPA is authorized to address reports of alleged violations regarding salt storage in Carbondale. No reports have been filed to date regarding Carbondale’s storage methods with the IEPA, Zimba said.

About the only requirement regulating salt storage is that a tarp be placed over the salt to prevent excessive run-off.

A contract should be awarded in six to eight weeks by the city council. The contract will go the lowest bidder with the proper qualifications for the job.