What is the Best Method of Road Dust Control?

For unpaved road dust control there are a variety ofmile of unpaved road, that a ton of material from that
solutions, but are they necessary? According to theroad is removed every year for every vehicle that
Environmental Protection Agency, unpaved roads aretravels on it. Without the help of wind, this nuisance
the biggest contributor to particulate air pollution indust can travel up to 500 feet from the road into the
America. The amount of dust that is produced byair. Not only is this problematic for residents near a
unpaved roads is five times greater than two otherbusy unpaved road, but this dust also inhibits the
contributors: construction activities and wind erosion..growth of plant life. For these reasons the need for
Not only is dust from these roads a nuisance, but theyroad dust control is real.
have been cited in many cases of respiratory illnessThere are many products available for help with
for humans that live near these conditions.unpaved road dust control, but they are all temporary
The state of Iowa conducted a study to see exactlysolutions. In time, these products will need to be
how much an unpaved road and associated trafficreapplied to the area. But with each application,
would cause particulate air pollution. The results wereapproximately 25 percent to 75 percent of the dust is
amazing. They showed that for every vehicle thatreduced.
travels over an unpaved road for one mile, one ton ofSpeed of the vehicle is another important variable in
dust is made annually. This is interpreted as for everycontrolling road dust. Control of the speed limits is in the
500 vehicles that travel over 100 miles of these roadshands of the politicians who should be made aware of
that 50,000 tons of dust is thrown up into thethe hazards and dangers involved.
surrounding air annually. This also means that for every