Cook County Highway Department awarded OPERA grant to Trial Potassium Acetate Deicer

The Cook County highway department applied for and has been awarded the maximum grant amount of $20,000 from the Minnesota Local Road Research Board. The grant is part of the Local Operation Research Assistance (OPERA) Program.

OPERA’S purpose is to fund and share innovations in operations, construction, and maintenance relating to methods, materials, and equipment for local government transportation agencies.

The grant ensures that the Cook County highway department can continue to expand trials of potassium acetate as an alternative treatment to the winter sand used to treat roadways after plowing snow. Potassium acetate-based deicer is biodegradable, non-corrosive, non-toxic, and overall is far less hazardous to the environment than road salt. Potassium acetate deicer is commonly used at airports due to its non-corrosive quality, as well as in fixed bridge and tunnel deicing systems by MnDot.

In exchange for the grant, the highway department will submit field test reports and findings back to the Local Road Research Board. Those findings are then shared with other road authorities throughout the country to help encourage a safe, efficient, and environmentally sound transportation network.

The highway department is cognizant of the environmental costs of using road salt, especially working between Lake Superior and the pristine water bodies of Superior National Forest. Our goal is to find a cost-effective method to reduce or eliminate chloride pollution in winter maintenance, while maintaining or improving safety on county highways.

For additional information, please call the Cook County Highway Department, 218-387-3014 or visit: tinyurl.com/44ammkzc.