ABSTRACT
The word salinity refers to the presence of salts in waters and soils. It refers to more than just sodium or chloride, the two elements of table salt. Magnesium, calcium, carbonate, bicarbonate, nitrate, and sulfate can all contribute to salinity. The suitability of water for drinking, irrigation, or wildlife depends on the type and concentration of dissolved salts in water. The salinity of water is usually expressed in terms of a measured parameter that is affected by all the dissolved salts in water. Electrical conductivity (EC) is the parameter that is most currently used and expressed in decisiemans per meter (dSm1); another is total dissolved salts (TDS) expressed as the mass of dissolved salts per unit volume of water. One decisiemans per meter is approximately equal to a TDS of 640mgL1. Other terms that are commonly used to express water or soil salinity are given in Table 1.
