Global Salt Experiment

In colder regions throughout the world the application of road deicing salts is essential to maintain safe travel conditions for humans. However, road salts are inadvertently polluting freshwater ecosystems, threating our drinking water supplies and other natural resources, such as fisheries. Many of the ecological impacts of road salts in freshwater systems are mediated directly or indirectly through zooplankton. Preliminary evidence suggests that zooplankton might be the most susceptible group of freshwater organisms to road salt pollution, but the effects can vary greatly depending on multiple environmental conditions that vary with region. To develop an understanding of the context-dependent effects of road salt on zooplankton, we conducted a coordinated mesocosm experiment at 16 sites in Canada, USA, and Europe during summer/fall 2018.