Search results
Results From The WOW.Com Content Network
Dryland salinity effects human and natural resources, such as native vegetation and crops, animals, infrastructure, agricultural inputs, biodiversity, aquatic ecosystems and water supply quality in the environment. Understanding dryland salinity requires a look at the water cycle.
Soil salinity is the salt content in the soil; the process of increasing the salt content is known as salinization. [1] Salts occur naturally within soils and water. Salination can be caused by natural processes such as mineral weathering or by the gradual withdrawal of an ocean.
Salinity is an ecological factor of considerable importance, influencing the types of organisms that live in a body of water. As well, salinity influences the kinds of plants that will grow either in a water body, or on land fed by a water (or by a groundwater). [19] A plant adapted to saline conditions is called a halophyte.
High salt concentrations within drinking water sources can result in many harmful effects on human health. [14] A study on two coastal villages in Bangladesh showed that when freshwater contaminated with high salinity concentrations is consumed, it can result in health issues such as hair loss, skin diseases, gastric problems, diarrhea, and ...
Because brackish water is hostile to the growth of most terrestrial plant species, without appropriate management it can be damaging to the environment (see article on shrimp farms). Technically, brackish water contains between 0.5 and 30 grams of salt per litre—more often expressed as 0.5 to 30 parts per thousand (‰), which is a specific ...
Marine waters cover more than 70% of the surface of the Earth and account for more than 97% of Earth's water supply [1] [2] and 90% of habitable space on Earth. [3] Seawater has an average salinity of 35 parts per thousand of water. Actual salinity varies among different marine ecosystems. [4]
On the other side, some plants show adaptations to changes in soil salinity, in that the plant's exposure to salt initiates certain mechanisms for cell osmotic regulation and causes changes in this plant's water obtaining and loss behaviors. [1] One of such plants is the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana, a member of the family Brassicaceae.
Fields of scientific research relevant to halotolerance include biochemistry, molecular biology, cell biology, physiology, ecology, and genetics.. An understanding of halotolerance can be applicable to areas such as arid-zone agriculture, xeriscaping, aquaculture (of fish or algae), bioproduction of desirable compounds (such as phycobiliproteins or carotenoids) using seawater to support growth ...