Upper Welland River Watershed Plan - Niagara Peninsula ...

UPPER WELLAND RIVER WATERSHED PLANa reduction in corrosive damage to salt application equipment, vehicles, andinfrastructure such as concrete sidewalks and steps;a reduction in salt damage to vegetation and surrounding roads and walkways;reduced salt releases to surrounding waterways; andan overall, more efficient and effective service resulting in safer roads andsidewalks for users (EC 2004b).With over 3000 centreline kilometres of roads in the City of Hamilton that people rely onfor safe transport, user safety remains the most important priority for winter maintenanceoperations (Ecoplans Ltd 2003). Accordingly, the City of Hamilton‟s Salt ManagementPlan (Ecoplans Ltd. 2003) ensures that roads are properly maintained in a safe conditionwhile addressing concerns about the impact that road salt is having on the naturalenvironment. A summary of their management goals in terms of environmentallysensitive areas include; to monitor Environment Canada‟s approach to addressingESA‟s, identify salt sensitive areas within the City, develop strategies for reducing saltuse affecting ESA‟s, establish criteria and indicators for determining impact, and developa monitoring program in accordance with guidelines being developed by EnvironmentCanada (Ecoplans Ltd 2003).In 2005, the Regional Municipality of Niagara undertook a Salt Vulnerability Study(Ecoplans Ltd), which identified vulnerable areas from road salt for land use, surfacewater, groundwater, and natural areas.Land use vulnerability in the Upper Welland River watershed that falls within the Regionof Niagara has been ranked as having a moderate to low vulnerability to road salt. Thislow vulnerability is associated with the impermeable soil groups of the area, thetolerance level of the crops to salt that are typically grown in this area, and the traditionalagricultural practices that are exercised.Surface water runoff vulnerability in the study area is predominately high due to therelatively flat topography and the low infiltration capacity of the Haldimand Clay Plain.The Dunnville Sand Plain however, has a low vulnerability to salt runoff due to the highinfiltration rate of the sand deposits resulting in less water being available for surfacerunoff, thereby representing a reduced risk of surface water contamination. Therefore,the higher the runoff potential, the higher the vulnerability of surface water features toroad salt contamination. Similarly, majority of the wetland and fish habitat features in theUpper Welland River watershed have been ranked as having a high and moderatelyhigh vulnerability to road salt.On the contrary, the situation is reverse in terms of groundwater vulnerability, whereasgroundwater vulnerability has been ranked as high to moderately high around theDunnville Sand Plain due to the high infiltration rate of the sand deposits; the remainderof the study area has a relatively low groundwater vulnerability to road salt.It is important to note that the Regional Niagara salt vulnerability study only assessedrisk for Regional roads. Municipal roads should also be assessed to better identify saltvulnerable areas in the watershed.In the 2009-2010 winter season Niagara Region initiated a pilot study whereby a liquidorganic de-icing/anti-icing product was used as an alternative winter control product. Theregional roads within the lower portion of the Welland River West subwatershed were64