Cleveland Salt Mines

The absolute darkness of the mine is broken as supervisor Andrew Adkins uses a headlamp to lookover a map of drilling sites at the Cargill Salt Mine, 1,800 feet below the surface of Lake Erie, in Cleveland, Ohio, Thursday, March 19, 2026.

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One of the largest salt mines in the world exists under Lake Erie

One of the largest salt mines in the world exists under Lake Erie

The Whiskey Island salt mine in Cleveland is critically important to providing enough road salt to keep streets safe during the harsh winters of the Northeast and Great Lakes states. And it has been a very busy season, with lower temperatures and more snow and ice in many communities served by the salt. The mine is one of the largest salt mines in the world, producing 3 million to 4 million tons per year. But demand can be greater than even that during especially tough winters like the one that mercifully came to a close this month.