Organic de-icer freaks out Chicago

Melting ice with salt or chemical mixtures can kill plants, make puppies sick, and contaminate groundwater. So instead of using pure, rocky salt, the City that Works tried to de-ice the streets with a combination of beet juice and salty water last week. But the effort tanked, as Chicagoans didn't know what to make of the gooey, sticky mess on the pavement. As the Chicago Tribune noted:

Its makers call it the future of snow removal, an ice-preventing alternative to salt on full display in the heart of a city whose political leaders know how important speedy snow removal is. But that's not how it looked during rush hour Thursday to bundled Loop workers or to beat cops who worried cars and people would start to slip and slide. For 15 minutes, police and fire radios crackled with concern, as if a truckload of banana peels had been dumped.

I wonder why they tried this liquid goo, when there are plenty of other eco-friendly de-icers on the market that look more like the usual chunks of salt or calcium chloride. Chicago, my people, on this first day of spring, I feel your "feels like 25 degrees"  pain.

Comments

[Rain]

the juice is back

[Rain]

the juice is back

[e]

yeah, that sand didn't work at all. too bad the scent of manure isn't enough to melt the ice in winter. they used the same in western Mass and you'd slip brutally on the ice, flat on your backpack.

[Andy]

Remember how they used to use Saharan sand in Iowa City? This, I felt, was typically the closest one in Iowa would ever feel to African culture...