More snow this year than the previous few has resulted in local municipalities- like Butler Township- using more salt to treat roads.
“We’ve probably used twice as much material year-to-date than last year,” Butler Township Superintendent of Public Works Tom Knights said Monday.
About 2,200 tons of salt has been spread onto Butler Township-owned-and-maintained roadways since November, including 1,500 tons in January alone. At a cost of nearly $56 per ton, that comes out to almost $85,000 that the township spent on salt in January, according to Knights.
There’s also been an increase in personnel costs.
“There has definitely been an increase in overtime and manpower based on the timing of the events,” Knights said. “There’s been a lot of weekends. A lot of late night events.”
This year’s busy winter will likely also lead to an expensive winter next year. This year’s cost for salt was the same as last year’s cost, which was a $19 decrease compared to the previous year. But, costs will likely increase for next year’s winter.
“It’s all about supply and demand,” he said. “The harsher the winter, the higher the costs. I can almost guarantee next year prices will go up.”
Roughly 1,000 tons of salt remains in the Butler Township storage facility at this time but new deliveries are taking place on a regular basis to replenish that stock.
The post More Snow Means More Money To Treat Local Roads appeared first on ButlerRadio.com – Butler, PA.
