Rink

2) Another way is to build a filter to catch most of the ice paint. This can be accomplished by building or making an area in which to dump all of the snow and ice. Put down a large piece of plastic or tarp in an area about 16'x16'. Side walls may be needed, depending on how much ice you are going to dump. Using straw, hay or sand (whichever is cheaper), cover this square area to adequately hold all of the snow and ice you are removing from your rink. Once the filter is built, then simply remove your ice and snow and dump it on top of this filter. As the snow and ice melts, the paint pigments will be filtered out or will stay attached to whatever material you used. The clear ice that has turned to water will flow through the filter and out to the storm sewer. You will then only have a small amount of filter material saturated with ice paints to dispose of properly into the landfill or designated area. This will be much cheaper than hauling away the entire ice sheet. 3) If your local regulations allow it, you may already have a filter on your property. Some rinks have been told to dump the ice and snow onto the grass areas where the ground will act as a natural filter and not allow the ice paint to flow down into the local water supply. If this is the case, be certain to keep the ice and snow only on the grass and topsoil. You must check with your local EPA and city regulations before attempting this method. 4) Some facilities have a filter system already built into their snow melt pit, but these pits tend to fill up quickly when removing ice, making it necessary for these rinks to dump outside and have a plan in place for proper disposal. Regardless of the method you use to dispose of your ice, it is very important to know exactly where your ice is going and what it will affect. It is also a good idea to put some signage around your snow piles outside to keep the public away from these areas. You don't want the local softball team coming down to pack their post-game beverage coolers with this ice. At the end of the day, it is a wise investment spending the time to properly plan on how to properly dispose of this ice and snow to assure that it is a smooth process with no issues. ★ march/april 2008 R IN K M A G AZ I N E 45 There certainly is a right way and a wrong way to dispose of this large amount of potentially contaminated ice.

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