DeKalb public works is preparing for what may be an unusually chilly winter season.

The department has stockpiled 1,000 tons of salt and a smaller store of sand. Mark Espy, assistant public works director, said he works with a $95,000 budget and usually buys 3,000 tons of salt by the season’s end.

Although Espy said he is not predicting a harsh winter, he said it is “hard to pinpoint Mother Nature.”

The department is responsible for 155 miles of roadway, and that number increases by 5 percent each year, Espy said. Including both the dump trucks and pickups, the city owns 25 plows.

Espy said the department can clean all the streets in about eight hours but recently has had trouble keeping up with DeKalb’s sprawl.

Were it not for a good working relationship with city water resources, doing his job would be much more difficult, Espy said. When he has needed extra manpower in the past, members of the water department regularly have offered help.

DeKalb may see colder-than-average temperatures this season, but that does not mean the city will see more snow.

Gilbert Sebenste, NIU’s staff meteorologist, said he is “seeing many signs that point toward a winter that will be average to colder-than-average.”

Much of the land north of the Midwest is already frozen, so southerly moving air will not have the chance to warm, he said. Areas of Canada have seen snowfall a month earlier than usual.

The Midwest’s colder-than-average summer was caused by consistent jet-stream action from Canada that should persist into winter, Sebenste said. During July, he said, DeKalb temperatures in the 30s were “flirting with all-time records.”

Colder temperatures do not mean DeKalb will see more snowfall than usual. Although snowfall still can occur when temperatures fall below the 20s, the air will not hold as much moisture, Sebenste said.

Sebenste said he could not predict if this winter season will set new records. He said he does anticipate higher heating costs.

“At this point it is safe to say that heating bills will be considerably higher than last year,” Sebenste said.