Duluth Loses Interest in Beet Juice for Snow Removal
Tuesday, November 27, 2012 - 10:56pm
By:
Dan Hanger
FOX 21 News, KQDS-DT
DULUTH - In a FOX follow-up, we're talking beet juice. It's a story FOX 21's Dan Hanger first brought you two years ago: The city of Duluth -- testing the substance on snow removal with a mission of lessening the impact of salt and sand from entering lakes and streams.
Duluth plow truck drivers tested the carbohydrate on the sidewalks around city hall and the results were very effective.
So, the team ended up visiting the City of Prior Lake to learn how they manage a beet juice system on the big plow trucks for city streets.
While a lot was learned from the training, city officials tell FOX 21, the amount of investment into the beet juice street program just didn't make sense for the return on investment.
However, the city says they'll still be using the creative substance around City Hall while continuing to experiment with other environmentally friendly mixtures to not only help the environment but also cut down on their $1-million salt and sand bill every season.