Reclamation of Salt-Affected Soils

To reclaim a salt-affected soil, excess salt should be leached downward so that the EC of the soil solution becomes lower than the critical threshold of the crop grown, commonly less than 2 mmhos cm-1 (Table 11.2). The calcium lost because of leaching must be replenished so that the soil solution maintains a SAR somewhere around 5. 

One of the most commonly used calcium sources in the reclamation of brine-contaminated soil-water environments is gypsum (CaS04-2H20). In highly calcare- 

The quantity of water that must pass through a brine-contaminated soil to bring the SAR and EC within the critical thresholds depends on the hydraulic characteristics of 

TABLE 11.3. Amounts of Gypsum and Sulfur Required to Replace Indicated Amounts of Exchangeable Sodium 

Source-. From the U.S. Salinity Laboratory Staff, 1954, with permission. I meq 100 g-1 equals 460 lb of Na per acre 6 in. deep. 

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Ashraf M, Hasnain S, Berge O. Bacterial exo-polysaccharides a biological tool for the reclamation of salt-affected soils. In Shahid SA, Abdelfattah MA.Taha FK, editors. Developments in soil salinity assessment and reclamation. Springer Netherlands 2013. p. 641—58. 

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