海角大神

Got salt?

After being peppered with yet another layer of the other white stuff Tuesday morning, road crews in New York and New Jersey are running low of the warehoused rock salt they鈥檝e been scooping into trucks and then methodically spraying over perpetually icy streets.

From the windswept Northeast to the shivering Midwest, states' transportation departments and local municipalities have been reporting shortages of de-icing salt reserves 鈥� even as America鈥檚 salt producers and distributors are having trouble keeping pace.

In Jersey City, N.J., just across the Hudson from Manhattan, city officials are waiting for more shipments of salt, even as they begin to use construction scoops and semis to truck out all the snow piled up from a week of relentless blizzards.

鈥淲e go through about 800 tons of salt per storm," on Monday. 鈥淲e鈥檙e getting 500 today, so we鈥檙e not really up to where we need to be entirely, but it鈥檚 a start 鈥� it鈥檚 better than what we had. This will get us through one event,鈥� he said before Tuesday鈥檚 winter squall.

After getting his 500 tons Monday, Mayor Fulop tweeted: 鈥淏igger welcome party than 4 the #superbowl teams in #jerseycity 500 tons expected 2day. need more.鈥�

In Pennsylvania, Pittsburgh鈥檚 public works department, too, finally received 500 tons of rock salt Monday 鈥� though officials say it requires about 1,000 tons of salt for every inch of snow that falls. Road crews there have been experimenting with beet juice, and current salt reserves are being extended with mixtures of limestone and sand.

鈥淭ypically, in a storm like this, we like to have 3,000 tons,鈥� said , as another squall moved into the area. 鈥淲e鈥檙e working with one-third of what we鈥檇 like to have, but we鈥檙e going to have to make it work鈥�. We typically use 40,000 to 42,000 tons [of salt] a year 鈥� so far we鈥檙e at 52,000.鈥�

New Jersey has spread almost 373,000 tons of salt on its streets since last Tuesday 鈥� and that was before last Thursday鈥檚 blizzard and today's squall, according to Joe Dee, spokesman for the state鈥檚 Department of Transportation. The state DOT has already spent a record $82.3 million for snow removal, including the spreading of salt. Last winter, New Jersey only used 258,000 tons all season.

In Connecticut, Gov. Dannel P. Malloy declared a state of emergency because of dwindling salt supplies last week, and New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo had also declared a state of emergency the week before, citing regional salt shortages. New Jersey Gov. Christie Christie has declared at least four weather-related emergencies this season.

In the meantime, New Jersey officials say , due to a 1920 maritime law that requires ships to fly a US flag to deliver goods between American ports. According to Mr. Dee, state officials have not been able to obtain a waiver for the law, so the salt, now on the Anastasia S, registered in the Marshall Islands, must be shipped to New Jersey by slow-moving barges.

And according to Pittsburgh鈥檚 Mr. Costa, from , located in upstate New York. The company also provides road salt for towns and school districts in 31 of Pennsylvania's 67 counties, and many are facing shortages as well.

Pittsburgh had ordered 45,000 tons at a cost of about $55 per ton, Costa said, on the basis of National Weather Service predictions for 44 inches of snow this season. More than 55 inches have fallen so far, however.

鈥淲e're not happy that we place orders and we don't receive what we order, or they don't deliver at all,鈥� Costa told local reporters.

In a statement, American Rock Salt said it is working 鈥�24/7 to address this current emergency,鈥� and is unable to respond to media inquiries about contracts, supply levels, or mining operations. 鈥淲e have been coordinating efforts with local and state governmental officials and agencies throughout this winter's storm activities to maintain public safety to the extent feasible,鈥� the company said.

Road salt runs about $55 a ton normally, though it can jump to $250 or more a ton when in seasons when there are more-than-normal winter storms and corresponding tight demand, according to Tom Breier, head of the salt distributor Ice Melt Chicago.

After last week鈥檚 blizzard, the streets of Wichita, Kan., remained covered with ice and snow for days after the city faced its own shortage of salt 鈥� even though it is just an hour away from Hutchinson, which has a large regional mine. 聽

鈥淭he salt has been in Hutchinson for 242 million years,鈥� , last week. 鈥淣ow our challenge was last week, getting it 60 miles from Hutchinson to Wichita.鈥� The city did receive get a shipment of local salt this week, however.

In New Jersey, officials are warning of the consequences of another storm. 聽

"A lot of the counties and municipalities are out of salt," . "If we have one more storm, New Jersey is going to have to close its interstates."