Arnold Salt Dome Will Save the City about $25,000 in Road Salt Costs This Year

The City of Arnold's 1-year-old salt dome has already saved the city about $18,000 in road salt this year.

"Arnold usually purchases two loads of salt during the cold weather season," Public Works Director Bryson Baker said.

A load of salt arrives during the fall to help the city prepare for winter snow and ice storms, Baker said. Another salt load arrives late in the winter to replenlish the city's salt deposit.

The city uses road salt to thaw ice and snow from Arnold streets and increase safety during the winter seasons.

The city consumes between 800 tons to 1,500 tons of salt during the winter season, Baker said.

Due to this year's mild winter and the dome's protection, Baker said Arnold consumed only about 400 tons of salt this year.

"We'll probably skip this fall's salt shipment and only purchase salt after the winter," Baker said.

Road salt costs about $45 per ton, the dome can hold up to 3,300 tons of salt, but it currently has about 2,300 tons of salt, Baker said.

Arnold would need a machine to pour salt shipments on to the existing salt pile to fill the dome, he said.

"Right now we (the public works department) pushes shipments into the pile," Baker said.

Prior to the dome's construction the city covered the salt pile with a tarp and placed tires on top of the tarp, Baker said. 

"It's difficult to estimate the amount of salt lost each year because that's determined by the amount of snow and rain that falls," he said about the tarp years

The dome allows the public works department to be more efficient in its salt use and in its budget, Baker said.

The dome also ensures employee safety while protecting animals and the Arnold environment.

Water and snow can turn a multi-ton pile of granular salt into a large slippery mountain, Baker said. "Workers would have to climb on the salt pile, break it into chunks and get it into trucks."

The extra work could occassionally delay the department's road treatment schedule.

The dome keeps the salt mountain dry and prevents it from congealing into a dangerous mass, Baker said.

The dome also minimizes the amount of salt from melting into the ground, contaminating stormwater and poisoning the animals and plants that live throughout Arnold, Baker said.