Saline soils origin

Clarke, C.J. George, R.J. Bell, R.W. and T.J. Hatton (2002) Dryland salinity in south-western Australia its origins, remedies, and future research directions.-Australian Journal of Soil Research 40, 93-113. 

A similar case is that of the Great Salt Lake, whose origin is Lake Bonneville (a remnant of a huge freshwater lake that lost its outlet to the sea), which receives inputs from several rivers and streams but with no outflow other than evaporation. It receives 2 million tons of dissolved salts each year, leached from soils and rocks, and its salinity fluctuates from 5% (similar to seawater) to 27% (near saturation) depending on the water inflow and rain input. 

High concentrations of salts (e.g., Na, Cl, and other ions), i.e., salinity stress, have two modes of action, i.e., nonspecific osmotic stress caused by water deficit and specific ion effect resulting from the accumulation of Na and Cl ions, which disturb nutrient acquisition and induce cytotoxicity. Salinity could have several origins soils which lay on geologic marine deposits, proximity of a seashore, and improper water and fertilization management. It is well known that transpiration and evaporation take away water from the soil as vapour, concentrating the minerals in the soil solution. 

This chapter discusses the origin of salinity and alkalinity, how properties of soils are affected by these two conditions, and strategies for reclaiming these soils for agriculture or other purposes. 

The amounts and profile distribution of various sulfur forms in Louisiana coastal marshes are important in understanding sulfur cycling as related to the origin and type of tidal wetland marshes. Sulfur forms and distribution were determined in P. hemitomon freshwater marsh, a S. patens brackish marsh, and a S. alterniflora salt marsh along a salinity gradient in Barataria Basin, Louisiana. Soil samples were fractionated into acid volatile sulfur (AVS), elemental sulfur, HCl-soluble sulfur, pyrite sulfur, ester sulfate sulfur, carbon-bonded sulfur, and total sulfur (see Chapter 11 for details). 

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