BROOKHAVEN — Ice and snow are a part of winter, but CSEA members working for the Town of Brookhaven are using an unlikely ingredient to help keep the roads safe – beet juice
The town is using a beet juice-based solution to pretreat roads before winter storms. Not only does the beet juice do its job, but it saves the town money and helps protect the environment.
“I was doing some research and came across some information about people in the Midwest using beet juice to treat the roads,” said Town of Brookhaven Highway Superintendent Dan Losquadro. “I’m always interested in finding ways to use less material and get the same result.”
Protecting the roads at a lesser cost
Traditional road salt is less effective in very cold temperatures, so many communities in New York have opted for brine solution. In recent years, many roads across the state have been treated with a brine solution, which is water saturated or nearly saturated with salt and has a lower freezing point than water. The brine loosens the ice or snow from the pavement.
Communities across the state have been examining alternatives to not only salt, which can be costly, but brine itself, as brine can be tough on natural resources.
When you pretreat brine solution with beet juice, half of the brine used in the traditional solution is required for the beet juice solution because beet juice makes the brine more effective at melting snow. It also makes the salt sticky so when the solution hits the road, it stays there.
“You have to mix 1,500 gallons of beet juice with 3,500 gallons of brine to create the solution,” said Town of Brookhaven Highway Unit President Walter “Wally” Green. “You can mix the two together like we mostly do or, alternatively, you can just spray the beet juice on top of the brine.”
The town has been using beet juice in a limited capacity for about one year. Right now, the town does not have many trucks capable of spreading the beet juice/ brine mix. Losquadro hopes to reserve money in the Highway Department’s budget for next year to buy the proper equipment to spread the beet juice mixture. In doing so, more of Brookhaven’s roads can benefit.
Ultimately, the town will reap the financial rewards from a comparatively small investment.
“Salt is $79 per ton. We normally use 30,000 tons in a season. That’s about $1.2 million,” said Losquadro. “On the high end, if we spend $350,000 on materials and capital investment to buy the equipment. You’re still talking about a savings of over $800,000 because we’re operating more efficiently by using beet juice.”
Beet juice is deposited into the rig that will disperse it onto town roadways. (Photo provided by Kristen D’Andrea, town of Brookhaven)
Saving our environment
Using less brine will also have a positive effect on the environment.
“Salt water intrusion into the drinking water is a concern in coastal areas,” said Losquadro. “If we can reduce the amount of salt that we are applying to the ground, with the addition of beet juice, it’s better for the environment because we’re putting less salt on the ground.”
If you’re wondering if the beet juice will color town roads pink, wonder no longer.
“The brine solution dilutes the beet juice and lightens the color,” said Green. “There’s only a slight detection of pink. You have to look closely to notice it.”
CSEA members find using the new solution to be helpful because it helps to maximize their time and effectiveness.
“The members here like it because it helps us get a jump on our work,” said Green. “Anything that helps us to do that is good.”
