State agency outlines changes, costs and concerns for proposed salt-application bill

Eva Plumb, director of the watershed management division at Vermont c., told the Natural Resources & Energy Committee on Feb. 26 that her agency supports the bill’s core aim: reducing chloride pollution while maintaining winter road safety. Plumb said the agency favors training and certification for commercial salt applicators combined with measured reporting and monitoring. "We recognize the important balance that's necessary between maintaining safety on roads and managing the adverse effects of chlorides on waters," she said.

Plumb and deputy watershed management director Bethany Sargent described three principal concerns the agency asked the committee to address: the bill’s tracking and reporting requirements, the language that establishes monitoring, and the cost and schedule for covering or moving salt/sand storage facilities statewide.

Why it matters: Road salt and salt-laden runoff are a driver of chloride impairments in small, heavily developed watersheds where dilution is low. The agency said a trained and certified commercial-applicator workforce combined with annual summaries of salt use by certified applicators could provide early, tractable information about changes in behavior while monitoring and storage solutions are phased in.

Key details from agency testimony

- Training and certification: Plumb and Sargent said they support a certification program for commercial applicators and a municipal training track delivered in partnership with VTrans and the…