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Permaculture Dust Control

 
gardener
Posts: 697
Location: Mount Shasta, CA Zone 8a Mediterranean climate
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Dust is infiltrating everything! It's even in my dreams (nightmares?) since I'm so worked up about it that I'm having dreams about dealing with dust that is everywhere!

So far I've seen people here talking in this thread about introducing organic matter and/or clay to the roads. The strategy here seems to be focusing on keeping moisture in the road with the clay/OM. If I understand correctly this works because the clay/OM is full of ions (charged particles) that want to stick to other oppositely charged particles, including water molecules, in a way binding everything together so there's less little particle flying off creating that dust cloud.

Other dust management ideas I've seen include planting strips of vegetation as a dust/wind break between the house and the areas of dust, sealing the road with epoxy type sealants, and paving the road.

Anyone have any other ideas or techniques that would be appropriate?
 
gardener
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Location: Arkansas - Zone 7B/8A stoney, sandy loam soil pH 6.5
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We use Irish and Scottish moss on our 400 foot long driveway. Not much we can do about the gravel road at the edge of our land but we do have tree and other vegetation barriers planted down there.
 
steward & author
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A local company is upcycling used cooking oil for controlling road dust.  They don't have the results back on how it effects local streams etc, but it shows promise for reducing dust on rural unpaved roads.
 
Steward of piddlers
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Location: Upstate New York, Zone 5b, 43 inch Avg. Rainfall
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Would adding more aggregate (gravel) help keep the dust down for a time? I'm guessing that keeping a layer of crushed stone in place may create a barrier from the worst of the dust being kicked up?

I have no experience with making roads but I'm curious to what other solutions might be out there.
 
master steward
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Location: southern Illinois, USA
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Our township uses a vegetable based oil on some parts of some township roads.  The problem is that a few people felt that meant it was ok to use used motor oil.
 
master rocket scientist
Posts: 6915
Location: latitude 47 N.W. montana zone 6A
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Actually, my rural Montana county will happily tell you any used oil is Okeydokey, motor oil, hydraulic oil, cooking oil (at least it smells like French fries)

Their only caveat is that it must not puddle in the road; you need a pipe with holes to drip it on.

I hire a contractor every few years to put down a calcium chloride mix, which really does hold moisture and keeps dust down.

Usually, within a month or two, the county will determine it is time to grade roads... with my new $500 dust coating on it.
Luckily, it still works, just not as well as it did.


 
Paper jam tastes about as you would expect. Try some on this tiny ad:
Homestead Pigs Course
https://permies.com/wiki/365748/Homestead-Pigs
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