Salem looks to get jump on road salt for ’09-10 season

By D.a. Wilkinson

Ohio may be allowed to seek lower salt prices out-of-state.

SALEM — Old Man Winter is winding down, but officials are already looking to the cost of road salt for next winter.

Many governments had sticker shock last year when road salt prices skyrocketed.

The cost to Salem, for example, for a ton of road salt this winter was $72.89 per ton.

Steve Andres, Salem’s service director, said that for the 2007-08 winter, the cost was $38.19 a ton.

Steps are being taken to help reduce costs, including a bill before the Ohio Legislature that would let the state get salt from companies in other states. Only Cargill and Morton Salt operate mines in Ohio. Under existing state law, the firms are guaranteed to win contracts. Scott Varner, an ODOT spokesman, said that with the change, the state could buy from salt companies in Michigan, New York and Louisiana.

For the 2008-09 winter, counties received only one bid from either company, according to the ODOT report. The two companies never competed head to head.

Subdivisions also were not happy that ODOT changed the amounts they could purchases from the state.

Salem, for example, previously could buy from 50 percent up to 150 percent of its estimated need through the state. ODOT changed that to 80 percent to 120 percent of the estimated need.

For years, Columbiana County Engineer Bert Dawson had subdivisions be part of his buying process. Villages or townships in the county could buy salt at whatever price the engineer’s office was paying.

Recently, though, those small subdivisions began to bid directly through ODOT, he said.

He noted that Cargill’s prices were reasonable this past winter — around $40 a ton. But Morton’s bid to Columbiana and nearby counties were at the higher prices noted above.

Varner said subdivisions had found ways to help reduce salt use and costs, such as using grit or roads or only salting intersections.

Salem has 1,200 tons of salt on hand, and Andres said he hoped it would be enough if the city is hit by a major snowstorm in March.

ODOT will be taking bids soon for the 2009-10 winter. Varner said ODOT did not want to ask for bids too early in case prices fall, or too late if the prices are again high.

Dawson said he had contacted Cargill directly and asked whether the company would offer a bid to his office, but has not yet received a response.

wilkinson@vindy.com