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As winter sets in at the University of Maine, the grounds crew prepares to keep the roads and walkways clear and open, but rising salt prices may make that difficult.
This year the campus ordered 960 tons of salt and sand at $55.79 a ton. The university will pay $53,765.74 for the year.
Although the price has gone up for salt, the crew does not expect to run out this winter. The university works with other towns to make sure they have enough material to keep roads safe. UMaine ran out of road salt last winter.
Geremy Chubbuck, associate executive director of facilities management, said the campus has 90 tons of mixed salt and sand stored in an on-campus shed.
Richard Guthrie, who orders UMaine’s salt, said the contract with International Salt ran out last year. The previous contract had capped the price of the salt.
“This year it caught up to us,” Guthrie said.
Chubbuck said the campus uses a form of magnesium closer to buildings because it is less corrosive than road salt. The new Martin Luther King Jr. Plaza is one location on campus that is treated with magnesium for protection.
According to Harold Dall, the grounds supervisor, the university also uses liquid calcium as an additive to the salt. The calcium improves the salt’s effectiveness in unusually cold environments. The university stores 3,000 gallons of calcium on campus and uses about 1,500 gallons per year. UMaine purchases the calcium for $0.89 per gallon, through a partnership with other towns.
UMaine works with surrounding towns to help reduce salt prices. The salt is delivered to all the cooperating towns at once, reducing shipping costs.
Dall said UMaine has acquired specialized equipment to make snow removal faster and more efficient. In the last five years, the university has purchased small tractors to use on sidewalks and hard-to-access areas. These John Deere tractors now make it easier to get closer to buildings and do less damage to the lawns and sidewalks. Some of the equipment is similar to heavy-duty farm equipment.
A second plow with a hydraulic ram has been added onto these tractors for faster snow removal. Dall said this eliminates the need for multiple passes, which saves time.
The storage shed for sand and salt has been used for the last few year. Dall and Chubbuck agree that it has drastically improved the ability to keep the campus safe. Prior to the shed, sand and salt was stored outside, causing it to become wet and frozen. The crews had to chip away the sand to get to the good sand below. The frozen sand also damaged the spreaders on the trucks. Dall said the spreaders would either become clogged or throw “golf-ball-size” chunks of frozen sand onto the road.
The ground crew keeps workers assigned to different areas of campus so roads aren’t being treated too much and the salt and sand isn’t being cleared from the road before it takes effect.
The crews prepare the trucks after each storm and all the equipment is kept inside to prevent corrosion and additional maintenance.
The grounds crew runs a split shift to help save money and keep crew on the university grounds all day. Dall encourages people to be patient with the grounds crew. Not only do they have to keep the roads clear, but they also have work orders all across campus.
“If it starts snowing at 4 in the morning, there is no way we can clear all the roads by 7,” Dall said.
The crew also reclaims a lot of salt sand from catches around campus as a part of state environmental standards. From the previous season 18.9 tons of salt and sand was reclaimed. The sand is safely disposed of to prevent possible contamination from anything in the sand, such as motor oil.
Chubbuck and Dall are confident that the university will have more than enough supplies for the winter. Dall placed an order above what was expected last year to make sure the campus didn’t run out.
Bangor Daily News