WQIO Ohio's Super Station
Richland County has secured 3,500 tons of road salt for the upcoming winter, but county officials say the supply situation remains a concern after two previous attempts to obtain salt failed.
County Engineer Adam Gove said Tuesday that the state sought bids for road salt for a third time after a dozen Ohio counties, including Richland County, received no offers during two previous rounds.
This time, Richland County was successful.
The county will receive the 3,500 tons through a state contract at a cost of more than $90 per ton. The salt will be delivered to an Ohio Department of Transportation outpost near the intersection of Interstate 71 and State Route 97. The county will then be responsible for transporting the salt to storage locations in Bellville, Mansfield and Shiloh.
The 3,500 tons are designated specifically for the county’s 347 miles of county roads.
Gove said the county still wants to help townships and villages secure their own supplies, particularly because salt availability has been an ongoing problem.
The county commissioners approved Gove’s request Tuesday to advertise for salt through a separate local bidding process. That follows an unsuccessful attempt in July, when the county received no offers from potential suppliers.
Gove said the county has changed the terms of its usual local contract in an effort to make it easier to obtain salt.
Under the new approach, entities participating in the county contract will be required to purchase at least 90 percent of the amount of salt they requested. Officials also asked local governments to examine how much salt they already have and estimate how much they will need for the winter.
The county has also significantly reduced the amount it is attempting to purchase through its local contract.
Gove said the county initially sought approximately 18,000 tons, but that figure has now been reduced to roughly 7,200 tons.
That’s less than half of the original request.
The reduction is partly based on the amount of salt already on hand and the county’s experience from last winter.
Gove said Richland County had approximately 1,500 to 2,000 tons in storage as of July, but that wasn’t enough to get through a normal winter.
The county used approximately 5,500 tons of salt last winter.
Gove said the additional 3,500 tons secured through the state contract may be enough to get the county through this winter, depending on weather conditions.
The difficulty obtaining salt comes amid broader supply and pricing concerns that have affected communities in recent years.
Officials have pointed to factors including supply-chain disruptions, terminal closures and low inventories following severe winters.
For Richland County, the issue is particularly important because the county is responsible for maintaining hundreds of miles of roads while also trying to help smaller jurisdictions obtain the materials they need.
Gove said his goal is to avoid leaving townships and villages without adequate supplies when winter weather arrives.
