Last Tuesday, May 8, the County Commissioners voted 4 to 0 to fund the county’s Dust Abatement Program with $35,000 from the Secure Rural Schools funds.
The county uses magnesium chloride for dust abatement, according to Commissioner J.R. Iman, but it also serves to stabilize the road. If a county resident wants to have the substance applied to a county road passing their residence they may apply to the program and receive a dust abatement treatment for the price of the magnesium chloride alone.
“If they buy the material the county will provide the labor, the delivery and the application at no further cost to the resident,” said Iman. He said those wanting the service who live along private roads may have it done but they must pay for the material and $165 per hour for the preparation and application.
Iman said that a policy has been developed for applying the treatment to county roads that need it but have too few homes located along them to cover the cost. The county does these roads to reduce dust pollution in the valley in general. They also work with the Forest Service cooperatively, he said.
North Kootenai Creek Road improvements planned
In a separate meeting the Commissioners also decided to have 6,800 yards of millings off of Highway 93 delivered to North Kootenai Creek Road for free for the county’s utilization. The County plans to use the material to improve North Kootenai Creek Road as well as some in the Florence School area.