'It will kill life': Cambridge councillor urging city to curb road salt use

Cambridge councillor Scott Hamilton will speak in front of city council on Tuesday to present a motion about tackling groundwater contamination due to the overuse of road salt. Hamilton’s motion aims to push for changes to liability rules for slip-and-fall accidents. He also wants to create a group made up of experts and a public awareness campaign. His motion will be discussed later in May.

Coun. Hamilton will present a notice of motion to tackle groundwater contamination by road salt

John Dalusong · CBC News · Posted: May 13, 2025 7:07 AM EDT | Last Updated: May 13

A person walks on a sidewalk past a pile of road salt. — Cambridge Coun. Scott Hamilton says rock salt does not melt, and instead seeps into groundwater. This affects water quality and threatens future water supplies. (James Chaarani/CBC)

A Cambridge councillor is hoping to reduce the amount of road salt used by the city, saying overuse could contaminate groundwater and "kill life."

"I mean if you add enough salt to anything, it will kill life," Ward 7 Coun. Scott Hamilton said.

He is speaking in front of city council on Tuesday to present a notice of motion that urges the city of Cambridge – and ultimately the province of Ontario – to tackle the problem of road salt.

This comes a week after Waterloo Mayor Dorothy McCabe presented a similar notice of motion during a regional council meeting.

Hamilton said the "spirit of this motion is to ask the province," as they have the jurisdictional authority to do significant change.

Hamilton says Cambridge uses 5,856 tons of salt per year. With salt registered as a "toxic substance" under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act, he said there is inherent danger in its overuse.

Scott Hamilton, Cambridge Councillor Ward 7 — Cambridge Coun. Scott Hamilton says the overuse of road salt threatens water supplies. He will be presenting a notice of motion at Tuesday's city council meeting to urge the city and the province to address groundwater pollution due to road salt use. (Submitted by Scott Hamilton)

Several studies support Hamilton's claim.

Ottawa Riverkeeper, a non-profit based in Ottawa that advocates for sustainable use of the Ottawa River, found in a study they published in January that among water samples taken from streams across the National Capital Region, "the vast majority were toxic to wildlife due to road salt levels."

The five-year study, which started in the winter of 2019-2020, found that only 10 per cent of 500 water samples had safe levels of chloride. Chloride is a "key component" of road salt, the report explained.

In a separate study, Taryn Smit, an ecologist volunteering with the Canadian Conservation Corps, explained that too much salt can make living organisms "become sick or die."

A woman stands outside along the river holding a small container of blue salt. — Ecologist Taryn Smit says as smaller organisms die because of salt toxicity, this causes a "chain reaction in an ecosystem." (Kendra Seguin/CBC)

"Think about if you have not had enough water and now you're starting to get headaches, feel sick and dehydrated." she explained. "The same kind of process will happen with anything that lives in the stream of the river because there's salt in the water."

Hamilton said this is why he hopes to see changes on the provincial level.

"Whether you're in Galt, Preston, Hespeler, Blair, you're affected all the same by the quality of our drinking water," he said.

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Waterloo mayor presented a similar motion

Last Tuesday, Waterloo Mayor Dorothy McCabe presented a notice of motion at regional council that also deals with salt pollution.

Joe Salemi, the executive director of Landscape Ontario, was one of the delegates who spoke to council about the motion.

Salemi urged the Ontario governmet to develop limited liability legislation, create and fund an expert stakeholder advisory committee, and send the resolution to all municipalities.

At that meeting, North Dumfries Mayor Sue Foxton expressed concern about the limited liability legislation.

"When you waive the right to lay the liability on someone, you're giving up your rights," Foxton said. "You're also allowing people to be negligent."

Hamilton said he hopes Cambridge will support his motion in May when he outlines similar steps to deal with the over salting problem in that city and the province as a whole.

Similar to McCabe's motion, Hamilton will bring up the development of a limited liability legislation, a public awareness campaign about best salt practices, the creation of an "expert stakeholder advisory committee" that would advise the province about the best courses of action, and a review of bylaws to support further reductions in salt use.

Hamilton says he hopes the public will see his motion in a positive light, explaining that his motion is meant to be "ultimately for our own benefit."

Road salt is keeping drivers safe but harming the environment, researchers say

Road salt making Ottawa-area waterways 'toxic' to wildlife, report finds

"If we have toxic drinking water, if levels of sodium chloride in our water are at unhealthy levels and it's at the point where it's killing off our ecosystems, our plants, in our lakes and our rivers, I think ultimately this [plan] is definitely a net positive," he explained.

"The majority of the public would understand that."

Hamilton is scheduled to present his notice of motion at Tuesday's city council meeting. The council will then deliberate on the motion on May 27, after which a decision will be made.