06/04/2025

A Salt Crisis is Looming for U.S. Rivers

Road salting behaviors are creating concerns in major northern inland cities

Perhaps on another day, the calm waters and green trees on the Anacostia River here would have been an escape from downtown D.C. about seven miles away. But recent heavy rains had pushed discarded bottles and wrappers to the shores. And on this unusually warm May afternoon, hydrologist Sujay Kaushal kayaked through brownish-green waters to investigate if the water quality showed signs of urban life, too.

Performing a routine checkup on its salt content, he dropped a black probe into the water, and watched as his handheld monitor showed a troubling result — the reading showed salt levels were above the federal recommendations for this region.

"Even after a rain, it doesn't wash away all the salt," said Kaushal, a researcher at the University of Maryland.

Please select this link to read the complete article from The Washington Post.