"Salt on the Roads: Good for Safety, Bad for Environment"

"The thousands of tons of salt that made roads passable this week have not reached their final destination, nor had their final effect. As the snow melts, the salt will be flowing into storm drains and beyond, adding to the steady salting of the region's waterways.

Over the last 60 years - pretty much since regular use of sodium chloride on roads began - the annual average sodium concentration in the Delaware River has nearly tripled and chloride has increased fivefold, researchers have found.

At times, sodium concentrations at the Philadelphia Water Department's intakes already exceed American Heart Association and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency 'guidance levels.'"

Sandy Bauers reports for the Philadelphia Inquirer December 29, 2010.