Officials in a New Jersey county said they are saving money on ice removal by using brine in the place of more expensive rock salt.

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Jeanne Baratta, a spokeswoman for Bergen County Executive Kathleen Donovan, said crews are using the brine to clear ice from sidewalks and parking lots and the scheme could be expanded to county roads next winter, The (Bergen County) Record reported Tuesday.

"We're just using salt and water," Baratta said. "You could drink it, and you could make pickles out of it."

She said a ton of the brine solution costs about $16, compared to $63 for the same amount of rock salt.

Mayor John Birkner of Westwood, the municipality supplying the brine to the county, said his city uses the solution on streets as well as sidewalks.

"We're doing it because it's more effective," he said. "It's more a practical matter than a cost issue. If you can get the snow and ice off the road more efficiently and effectively, then you're saving money on the rock salt."