Parks Canada is warning drivers not to stop while on highways to let moose lick their cars this winter.
The peculiar message comes as moose have been trekking onto highways to lick salt off of roads and passing vehicles, says Tracy McKay with Parks Canada.
“It does sound very funny … It’s okay to laugh at it, as long as people drive responsibly and do what’s best for the wildlife,” she said.
McKay says Parks Canada puts out a warning every winter as moose venture down to highways to fuel their salt intake.
“Unfortunately, this kind of puts [moose] at risk of being injured or killed if they get hit by a vehicle,” she said.
“Parks Canada understands that seeing those wildlife is a real highlight for a lot of people, but we ask people not to stop … so that the moose can’t get used to licking salt off of the cars.”
And that’s the problem. There are alternatives but until the feds actively push municipal/provincial gov’ts to change, they’ll just keep using salt or liquid saline solutions.
Alfalfa Meal and Coffee Grounds - can only be used in moderation due to their high nitrogen content which would fuck up waterways way more than salt.
Beet Juice - not nearly as effective as salt
Grape Skin - still in testing, no where near close to market, unknown ecological impacts
Brine - has the same problem as salt because that’s essentially what it is
Manual removal - are you fucking kidding me?
Salt is the best we have, and the alternatives aren’t just less economical, they’re also just plain unfeasible.
I just saw another thread where someone said they use sodium formate because it doesn’t fuck up their cars or concrete and is safer for their dogs. I haven’t looked deeply into it though.
With further gov’t-funded research I’m sure we could find more alternatives.