Date August 5, 2023 | Brooke Loeffler
Is Ice Slicer® Safe for the Environment?
4 Environmental Categories
We believe that when a road treatment claims to be environmentally safe, they must be looking at the whole picture:
- Air quality
- Soil and plant health
- Waterway health
- Wildlife health
Winter road treatments should be held accountable for more than just roadside ecology. It is not sustainable to selectively choose to protect one category at the expense of the others.
Ice Slicer®: Straight from Nature to Your Roadway
Direct from an ancient mineral deposit in Central Utah, Ice Slicer® contains a blend of 4 chloride salts and over 60 naturally occurring minerals. We like to call it “Mother Nature’s perfect recipe for melting ice and snow.” Each ingredient plays an important role both in our high performance and how our products interact with all 4 environmental categories.
Air Quality
Ice Slicer® is the perfect solution for areas looking to lower their PM 10 and PM 2.5 levels, and protect their air quality as well as their roads.
Winter months are notorious for higher air particulate matter (pm) pollution. Ice Slicer® contains only ~10% non-soluble materials. With Ice Slicer®, you can also get clear roads with around 40% less product. As a result, our products release fewer particulates into the air than other road treatments such as white rock salt, sand, gravel, and other abrasives/aggregates.
- Learn more about particulate matter air pollution
Plant and Soil Health
When applied correctly, Ice Slicer® nourishes soil and plant health.
Our mineral deposit in Redmond, Utah is not just the natural source for Ice Slicer®, but also many agricultural mineral products enjoyed by farmers since the 1950s. When proper application rates are followed, the natural minerals in Ice Slicer® runoff improve plant growth and invigorate soil microbe colonies. Areas that use our products in the correct concentration experience visibly healthier roadside vegetation. With no added chemicals or dyes, you can avoid the harsh leaching of other road treatments.
- Learn more about how Ice Slicer® helps soil and plant health
Wildlife Health
Ice Slicer® is all natural Redmond mineral salt and contains no added chemicals or harsh dyes.
Did you know?...that the unique blend of minerals from our Utah deposit has been used to nourish animal health for decades. With no harsh additives, you won’t have to worry about bio-accumulating dyes or toxic chemicals that can harm wildlife. Ice Slicer's® reddish hue comes from its naturally occurring trace minerals...nothing more!
Waterway Health
Ice Slicer® is safe for marine organisms, plants, and has minimal impact on bio-chemical balance.
As a complex chloride™ product, Ice Slicer® has the least impact (compared to other common deicer ingredients) on dissolved oxygen (DO) levels in waterways. Protecting DO levels prevents toxic algae blooms, nutrient pollution, and aquatic kill zones. With 90% soluble materials, Ice Slicer® does not increase water turbidity or clog flow. When applied in the recommended application rates, our road treatments help protect the delicate balance of water based ecosystems.
Ice Slicer® Supports Environmentally Sustainable Practices
We believe the most effective way to balance road safety and environmental responsibility is to use the right deicer in responsible ways. Ice Slicer®, and our parent company Redmond Minerals are committed to protecting our natural resources.
Partnership with Experts
We work closely with transportation professionals to thoroughly test and prove our products, so we can confidently educate others on what makes Ice Slicer® unique. Our close partnership with field experts (such as EnviroTech Services and the Western Transportation Institute) ensures that we understand exactly how our product interacts with both road surfaces and the environment.
Solar Powered Facilities
Redmond Minerals has been a proud Green Power Partner since 2016. Our mine, offices, and all other facilities use approximately 2.5 million kWh of electricity each year. We are happy to announce that 99% of our usage is solar powered!
Road Crew Trainings
Every year, our team conducts several in person and digital training sessions for shed crews (click and scroll down for Ice Slicer University). These trainings help distributors and snowfighters learn more about:
- Our product and how to use it responsibly
- How to calibrate equipment to reduce product waste and environmental impact
- Pre-wetting treatments to reduce bounce and scatter to the roadside
- Before and after storm evaluations to identify practices that need correcting
- And more…
Give us a call today and see how Ice Slicer® can help your area adopt a more environmentally responsible road treatment plan.
© 2024 Redmond Minerals Inc.