To combat the intense winter weather of Northern Wisconsin, road salt has been usedthroughout Marathon county as a cheap, effective means to melt snow and ice on roads, keepingdrivers safe in potentially treacherous conditions. Recent discovery has revealed that this roadsalt application has potentially significant consequences on local ecosystems near roads. Ourgoal of this project […]
Read More… from Mapping winter road salt use and sensitive areas in Marathon County
In order to be more cost effective and environmentally conscious, Marathon County ishoping to utilize a standard salt usage plan as the road de-icing techniques currently vary in eachof the 11 municipalities in the county. This disconnect is not only ineffective, but also potentiallydangerous to drivers traveling throughout different municipalities that salt heavier or lighter […]
Read More… from Examining best practices for de-icing in Marathon County
With the support of Andrew Lynch, AICP, Transportation Planner at the Wausau Metropolitan Planning Organization, and the UniverCity Alliance, students in the Nelson Institute Community Environmental Scholars Program researched road salt practices in the Wausau Metropolitan Area during Spring Semester 2021. Four University of Wisconsin-Madison students participated in the project through their enrollment in Environmental […]
Read More… from Road Salt Practices Across Wausau Metropolitan Area Municipalities
Marathon County is a county located in central Wisconsin which hosts outdoor recreation activities year-round. Anchored by its largest city, Wausau, the area is known as a gateway to northern Wisconsin. The county hopes to expand its rural biking program in the future, as they currently only offer bike-focused amenities in the Wausau metro area. […]
Read More… from Planning a rural bicycling network and future bike infrastructure in Marathon County