Letter to KM Messenger

Written by Cllr Tony Harwood on Sun 10th Jan 2010

Dear KM,

The deadly impact of prolonged snow cover on wild birds and other wildlife is widely appreciated - with starvation, dehydration and hypothermia taking a grim toll with every extra day the snow blanket persists.

Less widely understood is the insidious toxic legacy for wildlife, and ultimately humans, of the tonnes of road salt being spread onto our roads, footways and car parks. Road salt contaminates groundwater, surface water, poisons wildlife and kills trees and other vegetation. Birds, including already declining species such as house sparrows, are especially vulnerable to the toxic effects of ingesting road salt. Aquatic environments such as aquifers, rivers, streams and ponds (and hence our drinking water) are also very sensitive to contamination from road salt and associated anti-caking agents.

To tackle this toxic legacy industry, local authorities and their contractors must come to rely far less on liberal applications of, often ineffective, road salt and far-more on the traditional approach of mechanical snow clearance - pro-actively using machinery and contractors with shovels. Alternative de-icers and traction-aids should be deployed into environmentally sensitive rural and riverside locations.

However, we can all do our bit to help our embattled wildlife through the current severe weather by keeping bird-feeders well-stocked and regularly putting out scraps and fresh water.

Yours sincerely,

Cllr. Tony Harwood (Lib Dem)

Shadow Cabinet Member for Regeneration

Maidstone Borough Council