BY JEFF CHUDZINSKINorth Country This Week

CANTON -- Road salt is in short supply but St. Lawrence County officials have continued a 10-year partnership with Franklin County to secure future stores as winter continues on.

Legislators passed a resolution during the Feb. 24 Finance Committee meeting to approve the annual agreement, which Highway Superintendent Don Chambers said saves the county anywhere from $10 to $30 per ton of salt.

"It's a significant savings, purchasing salt as part of a cooperative with Franklin County," Chambers said.

The deal is one that the county has entered into annually for the last decade or so, saving the county thousands of dollars each year.

"We've been very successful with this arrangement," he said.

Chambers said the purchase covers all municipalities in both counties, with all towns and villages signing on to procure salt through the cooperative.

The deal comes at a time when salt supplies have been exhausted, partially due to extreme weather conditions this season but also due in part to state policy that forces the county to purchase salt from western New York.

"The entire state has had issues procuring salt this year, so I'm sure the legislation has not helped that in any way," Chambers said.

Chambers said salt stockpiles across the state were "exhausted," with freshly mined salt being delivered via truck load.

"All municipalities are in low supply right now. We did get a few deliveries just a day or so ago," Chambers told North Country This Week.

Legislator James Reagen asked if legislation passed last year that largely banned Canadian salt has played a role in the shortage, a fact Chambers said is pretty much without debate.

During a recent visit to Potsdam to advocate for additional CHIPS funding, Assemblyman Scott Gray said a bill was recently introduced to change the language of that law to allow for North American salt purchases.

State Senator Dan Stec said the bill would allow the North Country to procure salt and accept delivery at the Port of Ogdensburg again, ensuring a better flow of the good.

Chambers said salt has largely arrived in the region through the port, as well as by rail. But with a recent roof collapse at the facility in Norwood, rail is out of the question.

"The recent winter storm led to a roof collapse at the site, so rail deliveries are not even possible right now. The site was completely out of salt but the fact we are limited even further has not helped. That's part of the reason we're having salt trucked up to us. It's not the most efficient, ideal way to do it but we're doing what we can," Chambers told North Country This Week.

Despite the limitations, Chambers said salt prices have largely been in line with what they were before.

"Supply is the issue right now, not pricing," he said.

Chambers said the state declaring a state of emergency has also impacted the county.

"The state Department of Transportation is now taking salt out of the storage facilities in St. Lawrence County and distributing it to other parts of the state. That's just further compounding issues," he said.

Chambers said the county typically had a very large stockpile at the Bridge and Port Authority most years, however that stock is now spent as well.

"We're hoping to just get through this winter and to regroup in the spring. We'll work on stockpiling throughout the summer to ensure we're ready for this, if it were to happen, again next year," he said.