NEWS: Salt 'n' Snow

MARK McLAUGHLIN
Evening News (Edinburgh)
October 5, 2010, Tuesday

THOUSANDS of tonnes of salt are being stockpiled in the Capital in preparation for another "whiteout" winter.

Road chiefs have also snapped up an extra five gritters and eight mini-tractors in an effort to keep the city moving in the face of predicted severe weather.

Forecasters who predicted last year's big freeze are warning the country is facing another "bitterly cold winter", with temperatures likely to plunge well below zero. Widespread fog is expected in December and heavy snow in January.

The city council has stockpiled 5200 tonnes of salt, with another 2000 tonnes on order, and cleared a storage "dome" at its Bankhead depot to provide space for a salt reserve 40 per cent bigger than last year.

A council spokesman said: "We have been stockpiling salt since August and are expecting more deliveries in the coming weeks so we're ahead of the game."

The council has also bought another five gritters to add to the 26 it used last winter and an extra eight mini-tractors to supplement its gritting fleet of 18.

The city spent almost its whole £1.4 million winter maintenance budget in the first week of January as it was forced to buy in more salt from the Highlands and hire private salting firms to shore up its own stretched service.

"It's worth noting that we never actually ran out of salt this year, unlike some other local authorities," the council spokesman added. "So we intend to follow a similar programme to last year, improved by the increased storage and stockpiling."

It is unclear yet how much this year's operation is likely to cost.

Forecasters Positive Weather Solutions said Scotland was in the unusual position of facing a second extremely severe winter in a row. Senior forecaster Jonathan Powell said: "Scotland has another bitterly cold winter in store. Temperatures will rival those seen last year, with snowfall a close match."

The firm, which uses long-term weather patterns, said a white Christmas is a distinct possibility. Last winter was the coldest recorded in Scotland for 31 years.