Outreach Tools
If you see someone applying the correct amount of salt, make sure to thank them for their efforts. You can share positive messages on social media using the tag #saltwiseshoutout
Residents and organizations play a key role in helping to reduce road and water softener salt use and pollution to our waters. Join us! Help spread the word and encourage neighbors and local businesses to take action to minimize salt use. It's easy. We have a variety of materials, articles, and other resources that organizations or groups can use or modify.
Get Social: share our messages on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube to increase our impact.
Correct Salt Application
Incorrect Salt Application
Key messages:
- Once you put salt down, it doesn’t go away. Instead, it travels into our lakes, rivers, streams and wetlands, putting aquatic life at risk and endangering our freshwater resources. It only takes one teaspoon of salt to pollute up to 5 gallons of water.
- Believe it or not, a 12 oz. cup of salt is enough to treat an entire 20-foot driveway or 10 sidewalk squares. Scatter the salt leaving space between the grains (as shown in the pattern on the cup).
- When pavement temps drop below 15°F, salt won’t work. Switch to sand for traction or a different ice melter (PDF) that works at lower temperatures.
- Hire a winter maintenance professional that has already been certified through the Winter Salt Certification Program or encourage your current applicator to become certified. If you see your favorite local business over-applying salt, ask them to talk to their applicator about certification and share this handout with them.
Tools to help spread the word:
Outreach Overview: An overview of outreach actions you can take. Please read this before using the resources linked below.
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Household Door to Door Talking Points and Handout: to help you talk to your neighbors.
- Business Talking Points and Handout: to help you talk to salt applicators and local businesses.
- Oversalting Email Template: an example email you can customize and use to contact businesses if you see them using too much salt.
- Template Newsletter Article: a template article you can customize.
- Template Next Door Post: a template post you can customize.
- Salt and sand signs to post near salt and sand buckets.
- Salt Wise Cup: a cup for the salt bucket with a handy reminder that a 12 oz cup full of salt is enough to cover 10 sidewalk squares.