How a Midwest Dust Control Program Can Benefit Your Village or Township

In Dust Control, Transportation, Unpaved Roads by John Burnett

Properly treating unpaved roads with a proven dust control product improves the flow of transportation and makes your village or township a happier and more productive place.

Citizens of many villages and townships across America depend on unpaved roads to go to work, run errands, pick their kids up at school…you name it. With so much at stake in these people’s day-to-day lives, unpaved surfaces represent a powerful solution to any transportation woes, as they’re more cost-effective and potentially longer lasting than paved alternatives.

Of course, this all assumes that these communities employ proper maintenance techniques. Without them, unpaved roads can create more issues than they solve.

That’s why it’s so important to take the time to develop an effective dust control program that’s built specifically for your community’s roads. Without regular treatment with the right dust control product, an unpaved road will gradually erode and generate high volumes of dust, resulting in compromised visibility, degraded road surfaces, and negative environmental impacts. For over 40 years, Midwest Industrial Supply, Inc. has been developing Community Road Dust Control programs to help villages and small, rural towns prevent these exact issues — ensuring these communities enjoy a higher quality of life for years to come.

Extra Strength, Same Appearance

Since unpaved roads typically cost less to construct and maintain than paved roads (see: How Much Does It Cost to Build a Mile of Road?), they’re often an ideal option for rural communities with more limited municipal budgets than a larger urban center.

A quality dust control program can significantly prolong the lifespan of these surfaces. Indeed, it can make them as durable as their paved counterparts when treated with a quality dust suppressant like Midwest’s patented product, EK35®. Binding with the existing soils, this product infuses rural roads with the strength of paved asphalt while preserving the “as constructed” properties of the original road.

EK35 is an organic synthetic fluid that uses polymeric binders to join with the aggregate and agglomerate fine silt or clay particles, trapping dust as soon as it’s produced while reinforcing the roadbed. When applied to unpaved roads, EK35 can reduce fugitive particles by 80%, gravel loss by 50%, and maintenance costs by 50%.

Less Dust, More Safety

It’s hard to dispute that fugitive dust is a major concern for these communities. Aside from reducing visibility, it can also create health problems for local residents, whether they regularly use unpaved roads or simply live near them. Dust can also mix with water to create runoff that pollutes nearby bodies of water.

Guided by our commitment to sustainability, Midwest’s dust control products have earned more certifications for environmental safety than any competing product. We take care to develop dust control plans that will serve your entire community well, using only synthetic fluids that won’t damage, stain, or pollute surrounding vegetation or local water sources.

Rely on Expertise

We at Midwest think of a dust control program as a collaboration. We work closely with the communities we serve to address all of their road maintenance challenges, from recommending an appropriate product to handling the turn-key application process. We take the time to educate our clients about what their plan entails so that they fully understand how our customized approach to dust control works from the outset. And most importantly, we strive to maximize your investment in your dust control and road maintenance strategy.

From Alaska to Senegal, we’ve helped communities around the world solve their dust control challenges. We’d love to help your community solve yours.