Mountain of grit left after warm winter

A mountain of grit worth more than £1 million has been left over at councils in the Black Country and Staffordshire after the warmest winter for years.

Transport bosses have used only around half the salt they stocked up on as temperatures tended to stay above freezing.

It was a welcome break for the cash-strapped authorities whose salt supplies were pushed to their limits last year by one of the harshest winters in a generation.

Temperatures reached a peak of 18.7C (65.7F) last week and Britain was two degrees warmer than Alexandria in Egypt.

In Staffordshire, the county council has 20,000 tons of salt left, worth a total of £700,000. It will be stored at sites such as its depot in Watling Street in Gailey ready for next winter.

County Councillor Mike Maryon, cabinet member for highways and transport, said: "Currently we have 10,000 tons of salt, with a further 10,000 as a strategic stockpile which will be used in case of harsh weather.

"The estimated value of this salt is in the region of £700,000, and our stockpile was bought last year at a time when prices were lower.

"Stockpiling salt ensures we are geared up for unusually harsh conditions, and as the salt lasts for up to five years this means we are well prepared for future bad weather. Although we're experiencing mild weather at the moment, winter is not over yet so there still may be times where we will need to use our salt supply."

In Walsall, just 467 tons of salt were used compared with 2,206 tons by this time last year. The council has a £290,000 stock left – with 2,300 tons of the 2,800 tons it bought left over.

Transport boss, councillor Tom Ansell, said: " We remain prepared and have a plan in place to ensure we can deal quickly and effectively with any dramatic change in the weather."

Sandwell Council has 4,500 tons of grit left, compared with 2,500 tons by this time last year.

Dudley Council had 6,000 tons at the start of winter with 2,500 tons currently left over.