William Hintz, an assistant professor in the University of Toledo’s Department of Environmental Sciences, recently researched the deicing salt Americans use for roads and its relation to the survival of freshwater ecosystems. The findings were published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. According to the research, the buildup of salt (especially in freshwater ecosystems), which come from humans’ agricultural and mining activities, deicing salt operations, and more, impacts freshwater systems, reported Inverse News. Humans are dependent on freshwater ecosystems for drinking water. The Great Lakes on the Canada-U.S. border provide drinking water for more than 40 million Americans, reported Inverse News.