SEND US YOUR GREENSPACE PHOTOS!

Does your condominium corporation (CC) have a common area green space? If so, we would like to hear from you. The CCI Manitoba Newsletter Committee wants to provide space for a photo or two of your CC greenspace with a brief description. Along with the photo(s), please explain (be brief) how the green space helps develop and support your community. If the green space is a new development, how did your CC plan and execute the project? If it's a mature green space, how do you maintain or improve on the project? This is an endeavour to improve and enhance involvement of CCI members by showcasing achievements of the Manitoba CCI members in developing green spaces within their community.

If you would like to contribute a small article with photos of your condo green space please email CCI Manitoba Chapter at ccimanitoba@cci.ca with a subject line of “CCI Green Condo Page”.

DUANE ROHNE
Newsletter Committee, CCI Manitoba

ENVIRONMENTALLY FRIENDLY ICE MANAGEMENT

Mitigating the risk of slip/fall injuries should be of top concern for condo corporation (CC) boards, starting each autumn (notice the avoidance of the word “fall”) and continuing on through to the spring until all of the snow and ice are gone. Have you ever thought of how much you spend through the snow season to spread sand, crushed granite, salt and whatever to prevent slippery conditions, then cleaning up all of the stuff every spring? While you can see the sand after the snow is gone, what about all of the salt that was put down (note that the sand or crushed granite that is used likely contains 2-5% salt)?

Salt is corrosive to steel and concrete infrastructure, it can adversely affect your lawn and garden, and can degrade our waterways. If you have to use salt products, consider changes to your lawns and gardens to include more salt tolerant species. A report titled Sharing the Road with the Environment¹ suggests that “1 teaspoon of salt pollutes 5 gallons of water”. So how many teaspoons of salt are used on your property?

The internet provides a number of possible choices for environmentally friendly approaches along with some less damaging approaches, but it isn’t clear how many would be appropriate for the Manitoba climate or how well they work at the best of times. We’re not endorsing any of the possible approaches that follow but just using this space as a means to start a conversation with you, our members. Note also that any good risk mitigation plan with regards to ice and slip/fall injuries should probably deploy two or more approaches.

First and foremost, timely shovelling and snow clearing is key. If there is no snow to melt on your sidewalk there is less chance of ice. Another point to consider is drainage from your landscape and downspouts taking runoff from your roof - once snow starts to melt, where does the water flow? Just starting to think about the salt that is spread on your property is a good second step. One source, Road salt is polluting our water. Here’s how to fix it², talks about a salt management plan, mentions alternatives to salt such as cheese brine and beet juice, and technology options as keeping roads and sidewalks warm and ice free using solar power.

Numerous sources mention alternatives to salts but the best sources seem to be the ones selling ice management products. Eco-friendly Salt Alternatives for Melting Ice and Snow³ mentions anecdotal evidence for the use of kitty litter, urea (aka carbamide), alfalfa meal, sugar beet juice, pickle brine and coffee grinds, but doesn’t go into a lot of detail. Another source, https://meltsnow.com/products/, list several different types of salts, mixtures of salts, and acetates, and also compares and contrasts the performance of each. More importantly, they have an article Environmentally Green Ice Melt?⁴ pointing out “the terms “green” or “environmentally friendly” should be the beginning of your investigation, not the end.”

If you have first hand experience with these or other approaches, regardless of whether the results are goor, bad or indifferent, we’d love to hear from you. Please email CCI Manitoba Chapter at ccimanitoba@cci.ca with a subject line of “CCI Green Condo Page”.

ALAN FORBES
Newsletter Committee, CCI Manitoba

¹ https://www.epa.gov/sites/production/files/2015-12/documents/sharing-the-road-with-the-environment.pdf by Brooke Asleson of the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency, January 31, 2013

² https://www.mprnews.org/story/2017/12/06/road-salt-water-pollution by Cody Nelson and Amy Skoczlas Cole of Minnesota Public Radio®

³ https://www.greenmoxie.com/natural-green-salt-alternatives-for-melting-ice-and-snow/ by Nikki Fotheringham, contributor to GreenMoxie January 15, 2019

⁴ https://meltsnow.com/environmentally-green-ice-melt/ December 10, 2012