The Ministry of Transportation is in the process of implementing a living snow fencing project in parts of Huron County.
Spokesperson James Corcoran explained to Huron County councillors Wednesday that in areas where there are open fields, the wind can continue to blow snow across highways two to three days after a storm.
Anyone who regularly drives along Hwy. 21 is familiar with that, and many drivers have asked that trees be planted along the edge of fields to provide a windbreak.
Corcoran points out that for a living snow fence to be effective it has to be planted at least 30 m from the highway, which means asking a farmer to take part of their field out of production. The pilot project would provide compensation to the farmer for the loss of their field.
He also says keeping the snow off the highways could save up to 30% of the annual budget for highway maintenance.
The living snow fence project will be administered by local conservation authorities, and if it's as effective as they hope, it will be it will be introduced to other parts of Southwestern Ontario in the future.
