ABSTRACT
Being able to assess the economic potential of saline agriculture remains a holy grail among researchers and practitioners. This study offers some insights into the potential economic benefits from applying saline agriculture as a way to adapt to climate change in regions that are likely to suffer from increasing salinization. We calculated the economic value of saline agriculture based on three valuation methods, which included a simplified meta-analysis, a cost-based method and a market price method. Our results show that even though the economic potential varies considerably amongst a range of countries, we can observe some overarching trends, such as similar added value per hectare, ranging between 200 and 600 USD, and a strong focus on opportunity cost in most of the studies. The findings of this study are of interest to policymakers and investors for planning and allocating funds to saline agriculture.
