Freshwater salinization

Salt consists of sodium chloride. Through primary and secondary salinization, it intrudes into freshwater and damages the health of humans and other organisms.

Freshwater salinization is the process of salty runoff contaminating freshwater ecosystems, which can harm aquatic species in certain quantities and contaminate drinking water.^[1] It is often measured by the increased amount of dissolved minerals than what is considered usual for the area being observed.^{[citation needed]} Naturally occurring salinization is referred to as primary salinization; this includes rainfall, rock weathering, seawater intrusion, and aerosol deposits.^[2] Human-induced salinization is termed as secondary salinization, with the use of de-icing road salts as the most common form of runoff.^[3] Approximately 37% of the drainage in the United States has been affected by salinization in the past century.^[1] The EPA has defined two thresholds for healthy salinity levels in freshwater ecosystems: 230 mg/L Cl⁻ for average salinity levels and 860 mg/L Cl⁻ for acute inputs.^[4]

^ ^a ^b Kaushal, Sujay S.; Likens, Gene E.; Pace, Michael L.; Utz, Ryan M.; Haq, Shahan; Gorman, Julia; Grese, Melissa (23 January 2018). "Freshwater salinization syndrome on a continental scale". Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 115 (4): E574 – E583. Bibcode:2018PNAS..115E.574K. doi:10.1073/pnas.1711234115. PMC 5789913. PMID 29311318.
^ Cañedo-Argüelles, Miguel; Kefford, Ben; Schäfer, Ralf (21 January 2019). "Salt in freshwaters: causes, effects and prospects - introduction to the theme issue". Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences. 374 (1764): 20180002. doi:10.1098/rstb.2018.0002. PMC 6283966. PMID 30509904.
^ Evans, D. M.; Villamagna, A. M.; Green, M. B.; Campbell, J. L. (September 2018). "Origins of stream salinization in an upland New England watershed". Environmental Monitoring and Assessment. 190 (9): 523. doi:10.1007/s10661-018-6802-4. PMID 30116969.
^ Moore, Joel; Fanelli, Rosemary M.; Sekellick, Andrew J. (21 January 2020). "High-Frequency Data Reveal Deicing Salts Drive Elevated Specific Conductance and Chloride along with Pervasive and Frequent Exceedances of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Aquatic Life Criteria for Chloride in Urban Streams". Environmental Science & Technology. 54 (2): 778–789. doi:10.1021/acs.est.9b04316. PMID 31845802.

[:0-1] Kaushal, Sujay S.; Likens, Gene E.; Pace, Michael L.; Utz, Ryan M.; Haq, Shahan; Gorman, Julia; Grese, Melissa (23 January 2018). "Freshwater salinization syndrome on a continental scale". Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 115 (4): E574 – E583. Bibcode:2018PNAS..115E.574K. doi:10.1073/pnas.1711234115. PMC 5789913. PMID 29311318.

[:04-2] Cañedo-Argüelles, Miguel; Kefford, Ben; Schäfer, Ralf (21 January 2019). "Salt in freshwaters: causes, effects and prospects - introduction to the theme issue". Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences. 374 (1764): 20180002. doi:10.1098/rstb.2018.0002. PMC 6283966. PMID 30509904.

[3] Evans, D. M.; Villamagna, A. M.; Green, M. B.; Campbell, J. L. (September 2018). "Origins of stream salinization in an upland New England watershed". Environmental Monitoring and Assessment. 190 (9): 523. doi:10.1007/s10661-018-6802-4. PMID 30116969.

[4] Moore, Joel; Fanelli, Rosemary M.; Sekellick, Andrew J. (21 January 2020). "High-Frequency Data Reveal Deicing Salts Drive Elevated Specific Conductance and Chloride along with Pervasive and Frequent Exceedances of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Aquatic Life Criteria for Chloride in Urban Streams". Environmental Science & Technology. 54 (2): 778–789. doi:10.1021/acs.est.9b04316. PMID 31845802.

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