THE Forest of Dean's salt store at Cannop is almost full as Gloucestershire County Council prepares for extra cold weather.

For the past few months, the council has been stocking up on salt at its three county depots and it is taking on an additional 2,500 tonnes, compared to last winter.

The council is also seeking planning permission to build a salt dome in the North Cotswolds, which will increase stocks by a further 1,000 tonnes.

Currently two of the three depots – Cirencester and Stroudwater – are at full salt storage capacity and Cannop is approaching its maximum storage levels.

Salt will be re-ordered throughout the winter to ensure capacity is maintained at appropriate levels, says a spokesman.

Weeks of bad weather in early February this year led to a nationwide demand for salt and ultimately left dozens of councils without any stocks.

The council's supplier, United Salt, stopped delivering and the council was forced to reduce gritting patterns for a couple of days.

This led to the council taking the decision to reduce the number of roads gritted to preserve supplies.