Good morning. It’s Wednesday. We’ve heard a lot about snow lately. Today we’ll find out about the rock salt that’s crunching underfoot. We’ll also get details on a guilty plea by a public defender who was accused of stealing public funds to pay for vacations and teeth whitening.

Unlike the snow — which traveled several thousand feet through the atmosphere to get here — the rock salt on city streets traveled several thousand miles from Chile, Mexico, Peru or possibly Egypt.

Unlike the snow — which was white at first, then gray or black on the streets — the salt was pinkish at first, then white on the streets.

The salt arrived on ships. It was unloaded in New Jersey or on Staten Island and ferried to 41 Department of Sanitation storage sites around the city. The quantities are staggering: The city had about 317,000 metric tons on hand when the winter began. It used 99,000 metric tons in the recent storm.

The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey says that in all, 900,000 metric tons is imported in a typical year for New York City and for other local governments and agencies in the region. In 2026, some 369,000 metric tons have already gone out, but replenishment arrives regularly: Atlantic Salt, a bulk supplier, had two Chilean ships on the schedule for its Staten Island terminal in the last week. A third, loaded with 55,000 metric tons of salt, is due today.