Tardy salt deliveries, dwindling supply prompt Ligonier borough and township to emergency declarations

At least two more Westmoreland County municipalities — Ligonier borough and township — declared a state of emergency this week related to a lack of road salt.

Meanwhile, Jeannette’s emergency declaration this week led to an agreement with the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency to get salt from PennDOT, if necessary, said city manager Ethan Keedy.

“It was a tedious, ongoing project,” he said.

In declaring the emergencies, all three municipalities cited a lack of deliveries of salt. They are contracted to use Compass Minerals under the state’s cooperative purchasing program known as COSTARS. The declarations allow municipal officials to go outside of that contract to seek another supplier.

Ligonier Borough on Wednesday issued, and then removed, its emergency declaration after getting salt. Earlier in the day, Mayor Butch Bellas said the borough only had enough to do hills and intersections.

Even after Ligonier Township manager Mike Strelic reached out to other suppliers once the emergency declaration was in place, he learned they aren’t willing to risk their current customers for new ones. The township is waiting on about 80 tons of salt it ordered Jan. 10 from Compass Minerals and needs more, he said.

In an emailed statement, Compass Minerals officials said salt volume requests have been significant in a short time frame because of weather. The company said it has distributed an average of more than 5,000 tons of salt daily over the past week. There are 248 municipalities in Pennsylvania that contract with Compass Minerals, according to the COSTARS information.

Jeannette got about 140 tons of road salt Tuesday from the company, Keedy said. The city is still waiting on several hundred more tons it ordered earlier in the month.

Keedy also connected with a local contractor who was able to get salt from their supplier and add it to the city stockpile. He said Jeannette is able to get up to 250 tons from PennDOT starting at the end of the week. Any amount taken from PennDOT would be returned at a later date when the city’s salt reserves are back to normal.

Ligonier Township worked out a similar agreement, Strelic said. Bellas was hoping Ligonier Borough could, too. It was unclear if they did.

Road salt contracts are put out for bids, and suppliers are awarded an entire county, according to information from COSTARS. Eight counties, including Westmoreland and Butler, are using Compass Minerals, which is based in Kansas, this fiscal year.

Municipalities in those counties can decide if they want to take part in the contract, and 52 of 65 municipalities in Westmoreland did, paying $89 per ton.