Low Salt Design Earns Minnesota Climate Adaptation Award
Bolton & Menk’s Low Salt Design initiative has been selected to receive the 2026 Climate Adaptation Award in the Organizational Adaptation category, presented by the University of Minnesota Climate Adaptation Partnership. This annual award recognizes organizations across Minnesota that are leading the way in responding to climate-related challenges through innovative, practical solutions. Projects that earn this distinction demonstrate forward-thinking approaches to adapting systems, practices, or infrastructure to changing environmental conditions—especially those that improve safety, resilience, and long-term sustainability. This year’s selection highlights work that addresses the impacts of evolving winter conditions while delivering measurable benefits to communities.
Bolton & Menk is transforming how communities plan, design, and maintain infrastructure in cold climates by putting winter resilience at the center of climate adaptation. While most infrastructure guidance has traditionally focused on rainfall and summer conditions, this team recognized a critical gap: Minnesota’s winters deserve more attention in design to increase both vehicle and pedestrian safety.
Through Low Salt Design, we developed innovative, practical design strategies that speed up pavement recovery, reduce meltwater sprawl and refreeze, and outsmart the winter wind, making winter surfaces safer while significantly reducing the need for road salt. In 2024, Low Salt Design became a companywide standard at Bolton & Menk, improving winter performance across projects and helping protect infrastructure, freshwater resources, soil health, vegetation, and wildlife.
Our impact extends far beyond our projects. Our free Low Salt Design Guide is used across the United States and internationally and has been incorporated into Minnesota Pollution Control Agency stormwater guidance, marking a major shift in state practice. Through training programs, research publications, and conference presentations, we strive to empower municipalities, engineers, and maintenance crews to “outsmart winter” and build safe, sustainable, and beautiful communities.
Interested in learning more about how our Low Salt Design Team envisions safer winter infrastructure? Download your free Low Salt Design Guide!