In 1999, under the terms of the Canadian Environmental Enhancement Protection Act (CEPA), salt was declared harmful to the environment. Salt was declared a "High Priority" substance and was being considered as a potential "Toxic" substance. Although, the federal government has stayed away from classifying salt as toxic, this meant more attention and focus was now expected by road authorities and regulatory agencies on its management. All road authorities use salt for snow/ice control, so this declaration had a significant impact on regulatory agencies in assessing salt management practices and salt brine disposal. Currently, there is no combined environmentally friendly and cost effective disposal method for salt brine. The increased awareness and focus on salt by both federal and provincial entities and the progression to tighter controls on the usage and disposal of salt laden materials prompted us to look at developing a functional and environmentally friendly disposal method for salt brine, thus commenced project "EVAP". For the covering abstract of this conference see ITRD number E211426.
Abstract