Beneath Lake Erie, a vast salt mine works overtime to meet winter road demands
CLEVELAND, Ohio (AP) — Below Cleveland, in an underground world many surface dwellers don’t know exists, miners are mining salt, an important winter mineral.
The Whiskey Island salt mine, owned by food giant Cargill, helps supply road salt throughout the Northeast and Great Lakes. winter is colder and snowier than ever stimulated demand. Cargill spokeswoman Emily Tangeman said many municipalities typically have used up supplies that will last them until spring.
“Our teams have been working overtime since September to support customers across the snowbelt,” Tangeman said, noting that early, persistent winter weather has increased demand across the industry.
The mine beneath Lake Erie, one of the largest mines in the world, produces 3 million to 4 million tons (2.7 million to 3.6 million metric tons) annually, but this can fall short of demand, especially during harsh winter months.
Located 1,800 feet (549 meters) underground, it is accessed from Whiskey Island, a waterfront industrial area just next to downtown Cleveland. The mine, opened in the 1960s, operates year-round with salt extracted by drilling and blasting through large tunnels created from an ancient inland sea that dried up millions of years ago.
Inside, the mine is a maze of roughly rectangular caves with chalk-white walls and ceilings that stretch for miles. There is dim lighting and it is often pitch black beyond the glare of headlights and spotlights. Heavy machinery and conveyor belts rumble as small ATVs ferry miners around.
Maintenance chief George Campbell said operations are continuous, with downtime used for maintenance and repairs to keep production stable. Cargill said it is prioritizing shipments to ensure salt reaches areas where it is needed most as winter continues in some areas. Frequent minor storms also increase usage, requiring repeated salting and creating logistical challenges, Tangeman said.
Return to harsher conditions Increasing temperatures in the eastern US meant that some cities, including Boston, Bangor, Maine and Ithaca, New York, experienced their coldest seasons in more than a decade. The winter weather is still not over in some parts of the country, so it’s not over at the Cleveland mine either.
Campell said there are still decades of salt left to be mined.
“I think we have enough reserves to keep people working for a long time,” Campbell said.
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Whittle reported from Portland, Maine.
