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Manufacture of common salt by evaporation of natural brine has been renowned from past. The southern state of Tamil nadu in India, 75% of the salt is made by solar evaporation of sea brine, 20% from subsoil brine and therefore the rest from backwater. For the manufacture of salt and its by-products by the evaporation of brine, the information of each the composition of the brine and its phase chemistry is important. Underground brine (subsoil) is considered to be the sea water cut-off from oceans and concentrated by sunlight. It contains the elements of chloride, sulphate, calcium, magnesium, sodium and potassium in higher proportion. The physical parameter of rainfall data was collected because it interferes by diluting the brine and reducing the rate of evaporation. The monitoring of the physical and chemical parameters of brine at various stages viz, source, reservoir, condenser, crystallizer and bittern of the subsoil salt-pan gives plentiful possibilities for the management of the salt-pans. The results of chemical parameters and their seasonal dissimilarities were studied for a period of one year. (Jan-Dec 2019).

The microalgae Dunaliella is a commercially viable species and well known for its extreme environmental tolerance and β-carotene production under stressful conditions. We examined the effect of salinity and light intensity on the growth and β-carotene production, respectively, in two different species of Dunaliella: Dunaliella. sp. and D. salina, isolated from the salt pans of Goa. Both the species were cultured in growth media with different salinity levels to establish the optimum salinity favouring maximum cell growth. Thereafter, the cells were cultured under optimum NaCl concentration, exposed to a range of light intensity and monitored for β-carotene production. The two species, identified based on their molecular characteristics, displayed a significant difference in growth and β-carotene production. Both D. salina and D. sp achieved a maximum cell density of 11.82×106 cells/ml and 18.76×106 cells/ml at 0.75 M and 0.5 M salinity, respectively. D. salina accumulated a large amount of total carotenoid (36.95 pg. cell-1) when cultured at 0.75 M salinity and exposed to high light intensity (1000 µmol m− 2 S− 1). In contrast, the carotenoid content per cell was low in Dunaliella sp. (3.07 pg. cell-1) when cultured under optimal salinity (0.5M) and high light intensity, indicating photoinhibition. We found that different Dunaliella species exhibit different photo-physiological properties that need further evaluation to identify the right candidate for industrial applications.

Endorheic basin brines are of economic significance as sources of boron, iodine, magnesium, potassium, sodium sulfate, sodium carbonate, and tungsten, and they are a major source of the critical metal lithium. Although evaporation is the primary hypersalinization driver for evaporative water bodies, recent investigations have proposed more novel mechanisms for some subsurface brine. This investigation explores shallow groundwater hypersalinization. The chemical evolution and isotopic fractionation of shallow hypersaline groundwater in the clay-rich arid endorheic basin sediments of Pilot Valley, Great Basin (USA), were investigated. Groundwater evolves from fresh in the mountain bedrock and alluvial fans, to brackish and saline at the alluvial fan–playa interface, and to hypersaline in the upper 12 m of basin sediments. Alluvial fan systems are isolated from each other and have varying groundwater3H and14C travel times. Nonevaporative in-situ isotopic fractionation of up to −8‰ in δ18O is attributed to clay sequence hyperfiltration. Groundwater flow-path sulfate and chloride mineral dissolution is the primary driving mechanism for both interface and basin groundwater evolution. Evaporation only impacts the groundwater quality in a small portion of the basin where the groundwater is within ~1 m of the ground surface. Here capillary action carries dissolved soluble salts to the land surface. Episodic flooding redissolves and carries the precipitated salt to the annually flooded salt pan where it accumulates as a salt crust during the dry season. The Pilot Valley model may help explain the buildup accumulative layers of soluble salt that when remobilized becomes subsurface brine.

Reputed to be the driest desert in the world, the Atacama Desert in the Central Andes of Northern Chile is an extreme environment with high UV radiation, wide temperature variation, and minimum precipitation. Scarce lagoons associated with salt flats (salars) in this desert are the surface expression of shallow groundwater; these ponds serve as refugia for life and often host microbial communities associated with evaporitic mineral deposition. Results based on multidisciplinary field campaigns and associated laboratory examination of samples collected from the Puquios of the Salar de Llamara in the Atacama Desert during austral summer provide unprecedented detail regarding the spatial heterogeneity of physical, chemical, and biological characteristics of these salar environments. Four main lagoons (‘Puquios’) and more than 400 smaller ponds occur within an area less than 5 km2, and are characterized by high variability in electrical conductivity, benthic and planktonic biota, microbiota, lagoon bottom type, and style of mineral deposition. Results suggest that electrical conductivity is a driving force of system heterogeneity. Such spatial heterogeneity within the Puquios is likely to be expanded with temporal observations incorporating expected seasonal changes in electrical conductivity. The complexity of these Andean ecosystems may be key to their ability to persist in extreme environments at the edge of habitability.

The study area is located in the arid section of Punjab province, Pakistan. The accessibility of freshwater is the main problem in this area. The area is mainly flat and alluvial deposits are present down to 800 m. The groundwater is not fit for drinking because of its salinity. Hence, it is essential to mark the transition between fresh water and saltwater. Resistivity models were used to locate freshwater areas. The saltwater areas are between 10 and 30 m deep. Salt flats and clayrich deposits are visible on resistivity maps and were identified by low resistance values. After linking resistivity data and maps, it is determined that the south portion of the area has a freshwater aquifer, especially at a depth of 200 m. At this depth, the quality of water is very good, regardless of its mild salinity in some areas. The margin between salty and freshwater is set to no degree. This is dependent upon the recharge and usage of an aquifer. Groundwater pollution poses a severe threat to the city’s residents. Results from the physio-chemical analysis of the water samples confirm the presence of arsenic in excessive amounts in water samples and are outside the limits set by the WHO and NDWQS. Just two out of 10 samples are within the limits for safe drinking water. The results of this research are valued for groundwater management and the installation of tubular wells in freshwater areas for households and irrigation purposes., Istraživano područje smješteno je u pustinjskome dijelu provincije Punjab u Pakistanu, obilježenome nedostatkom pitke vode. Područje je najvećim dijelom zaravnjeno i prekriveno aluvijem koji mjestimice može dosegnuti i 800 m debljine. Podzemna voda nije pogodna za piće zbog slanosti. Stoga je iznimno važno prepoznati prijelaznu zonu između slatke i slane vode. Za lociranje slatkovodnih područja korišteni su modeli otpornosti. Područja slane vode duboka su između 10 i 30 m. Taložine soli i gline opažaju se na kartama otpornosti niskim vrijednostima otpora. Uočeno je kako se na jugu područja javljaju vodonosnici slatke vode, čak na dubini od 200 m, s vrlo dobrom kvalitetom vode, uz rijetku pojavu bočatosti. Granicu između slatke i slane vode nije moguće jednoznačno odrediti, a ovisi o dotoku i uporabi vodonosnika. Njihovo zagađenje može biti ozbiljan problem, poglavito za gradska područja. Rezultati fizičko-kemijske analize pokazali su nazočnost prevelikih količina arsena, tj. u granicama iznad dopuštenih klasifikacijama WHO-a i NDWQS-a. Od 10 samo su 2 uzorka bila u granicama koje određuju pitku vodu. Rezultati su vrijedan doprinos za gospodarenje tom podzemnom vodom te projektiranje bušotina kojima bi se pitka/slatka voda dovodila kućanstvima ili koristila za navodnjavanje.

Southeastern coastal inlands around the Gulf of Mannar in the Tiruchendur district are primarily areas of agriculture, salt pan, and industry. Canals of Tamirabarani River are the main source of groundwater for irrigation and livestock purposes. Intrusion of saltwater can have a range of major economic and environmental effects, including decreased freshwater storage capacity, pollution of freshwater production wells, salinisation of soil and decreased freshwater discharge into marine environments. In the study area, geophysical and geo-chemical investigations were conducted to interpret geological subsurface formation and to assess intrusion by seawater. Electrical resistivity tomographic surveys conducted in the study area showed low resistivity formation in the coastal region, as the average soil thickness is about 3 m with low surface moisture retention. The fresh water in the study area is given by nearly 10–100 Ωm of resistivity. The 10–50 Ωm apparent resistivities indicate the sub-surface section consists of sand, clay, and caliche. The very low layer of resistivity (

Esta pesquisa objetivou detalhar, a partir de uma visao sistemica, o ecossistema manguezal na escala Brasil, baseando-se na escala de Unidades, e nas definicoes de ecossistema. A multiplicidade de fitofisionomias de mangues ao longo da costa brasileira requer conhecimentos especificos acerca dos agentes condicionantes que explicam tais configuracoes, assim buscou-se detalhar a assinatura energetica da costa brasileira para melhor compreensao da dispersao, diversidade e zonacao da vegetacao de mangue. A base de dados foi secundaria, coletados em artigos nacionais e internacionais, teses e dissertacoes e sites oficiais. Como resultados tem-se: 1- Foram identificadas nove Unidades Ambientais para o Dominio Costeiro brasileiro, com base em suas caracteristicas gerais, onde estudo anterior estabelecia oito Unidades; 2- Os fluxogramas para cada Unidade foram elaborados a partir das energias subsidiarias, ou seja, insolacao media anual; temperatura media anual; precipitacao media anual; nutrientes; vazao media anual; amplitude media de mare, resultando assim em uma caracterizacao ambiental para cada Unidade. 3- Como resposta a Assinatura Energetica de cada Unidade, foi possivel identificar padroes de dispersao/ocorrencia de especies de mangue com ocorrencia. 4- Para o Brasil o genero de maior diversidade e Rhizophora, esse ocorre em toda a costa brasileira. Contudo, somente a Rhizophora mangle esta presente desde a foz do Rio Oiapoque-AM ate Santa Catarina. A R. racemosa e R. harrisonii se dispersam desde a Regiao Norte com seu limite sul no Delta do Rio Parnaiba-PI no Nordeste brasileiro. Energy Signature of Manguezals in the Brazilian Coastal Domain ABSTRACT This research aimed to detail, from a systemic view, the mangrove ecosystem on the Brazil scale, based on the Units scale, and on the ecosystem definitions. The multiplicity of mangrove phytophysiognomies along the Brazilian coast requires specific knowledge about the conditioning agents that explain such configurations, so we sought to detail the energy signature of the Brazilian coast to better understand the dispersion, diversity and zoning of the mangrove vegetation. The database was secondary, collected in national and international articles, theses and dissertations and official websites. The results are: 1- Nine Environmental Units for the Brazilian Coastal Domain were identified, based on their general characteristics, where a previous study established eight Units; 2- The flowcharts for each Unit were prepared based on subsidiary energies, that is, average annual sunshine; annual average temperature; average annual precipitation; nutrients; average annual flow; average tidal range, thus resulting in an environmental characterization for each Unit. 3- In response to the Energy Signature of each Unit, it was possible to identify patterns of dispersion / occurrence of mangrove species with occurrence. 4- For Brazil, the most diverse genus is Rhizophora, which occurs throughout the Brazilian coast. However, only the Rhizophora mangle is present from the mouth of the Oiapoque-AM to Santa Catarina. R. racemosa and R. harrisonii are dispersed from the North Region with its southern limit in the Delta of the river Parnaiba-PI in the Northeast of Brazil. Keyworlds: structure and diversity; mangrove species; salt flats; stressor; subsidiary energy.

Introduction:India is among the three top countries producing salt on large scale.Salt pan workers toil for about seven to eight hours. Working in salt industry exposes the working population to direct contact with inhalable salt dust, salt crystals as well as concentrated brine leading to corrosive effect of salt, physical stress of hard manual labor. Therefore it was thought to study health problems of salt pan workers in Mumbai especially dermatological morbidity. Objectives: 1. To study the socio-demographic profile of salt pan workers. 2. To measure the point prevalence of dermatological morbidities in salt pan workers. 3. To observe the association between duration of salt works and presence of dermatological symptoms. 4. To study the association between use of Personal Protective Equipments and presence of dermatological symptoms. Methods: Study Design:Cross sectional study. Sample size:385 Study subjects:Individual who were working with dry salt (non-brine workers) and those working in a brine plant (Brine workers) were chosen for the study after taking informed consent. Duration of study:18 months, August 2011 to January 2014. Systematic random sampling method was used. Study tools were Interview schedule and Clinical examination.Salt pan workers who worked for more than six months were included.. SPSS version 15.0 was used for data analysis. Results and Conclusion: Overall point prevalence of dermatological symptoms was 12.7% The most common was itching 6.8% followed by burning sensation over limbs 5.2%, dryness of skin 2.3 % and cracks 1.3% over limbs.

Salt is one of the national strategic commodities. But until now the notional needs of salt have not been met by national salt production in the country, one of the efforts to increase salt production in the country is to optimize existing potential salt field. The island of tanakeke in takalar district of southern sulawesi province has a potential salt field, wich is not yet well watered. The reseach’s aims (1) to anayize potential land appropriations for the development of salt pans on tanakeke island (2) to analize the salt-farm development cost (3) to determine salt pond development strategies based on the characteristics of the research area. Research suggetts that the total potential land most suitable for development of salt pond at 1.106,58 ha or about 38,91 % of the total land on Tanakeke islands. Based on the financial analysis of the salt pond with geomembran method on an acre of land on tanakeke islands are feasible to continue. Followed by the investment criteria acquired by NPV>1, Net B/C>1 and IRR>discount rate. Selected combination of strategies (1) Priority strategies; Training in increased human resource capacity and Infrastructure improvements. (2) altenative strategies; salt regulatory improvements.

Fil: Thames Cantolla, Martin. Universidad Nacional de Salta. Facultad de Ingeniería. Instituto de Investigaciones para la Industria Química; Argentina. Fil: Thames Cantolla, Martin. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Investigaciones para la Industria Química; Argentina. Fil: Valdez, Silvana K. Universidad Nacional de Salta. Facultad de Ingeniería. Instituto de Investigaciones para la Industria Química; Argentina. Fil: Valdez, Silvana K. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Investigaciones para la Industria Química; Argentina. Fil: Tinte Montalbetti, María de los A. Universidad Nacional de Salta. Facultad de Ingeniería; Argentina. En los últimos 20 años la explotación del litio cobró importancia mundial debido al aumento de su demanda industrial. En Argentina, la explotación de salmueras con litio se realiza en distintos salares del NOA. Puntualmente, en la región de la Puna salteña, originó la llegada de numerosas empresas mineras con el objetivo de producir Carbonato de Litio. Esta región se caracteriza por poseer un clima árido y seco, y en donde por años, las actividades económicas fueron la ganadería de subsistencia (crianza de llamas y ovejas) y los intercambios de sal por mercadería, entre otros. El objetivo del trabajo presentado, es el diseño de un modelo matemático de la calidad de vida de las comunidades que habitan en las cercanías de las empresas mineras productoras de carbonato de litio en el NOA. Se propusieron como factores principales que influyen en la calidad de vida: trabajo, educación, salud, ambiente y familia. Se formularon encuestas a los habitantes de dichas comunidades y con ellas se realizó el análisis de datos empleando los modelos de ecuaciones estructurales (SEM). Se determinó que los factores familia y trabajo son los de mayor influencia en la calidad de vida las comunidades. In the last 20 years the exploitation of lithium has gained worldwide importance due to the increase in its industrial demand. In Argentina, the exploitation of brines with lithiumis carried out in different salt flats in the northwest of Argentina (NOA). Originally, the region of the Puna of Saltasaw the arrival of numerous mining companies with the aim of producing Lithium Carbonate. This region is characterized by an arid and dry climate, and over the years the economic activities were subsistence farming (raising llamas and sheep) and salt exchange for goods, among others. The aim of this study was the design of a mathematical model of the quality of life of the communities that live in the surrounding area of the mining companies producing lithium carbonate in the NOA region. The following were proposed as main factors that influence the quality of life: work, education, health, environment and family. Population surveys were conducted in these communities and the data analysis was carried out using the Structural Equation Modeling (SEM). It was determined that family and work factors are the most influential ones in the quality of life of the communities.

The data set described here contains information about the surface, subsurface and environmental conditions of salt pans that express polygonal patterns in their surface salt crust. Information stems from 5 field sites at Badwater Basin and 21 field sites at Owens Lake – both in central California. All data was recorded during two field campaigns, from between November and December, 2016, and in January 2018. Crust surfaces, including the mean diameter and fluctuations in the height of the polygonal patterns, were characterised by terrestrial laser scanner (Nield et al., 2020b), DOI 10.1594/PANGAEA.911233. The data contains the resulting three dimensional point clouds, which describe these surfaces. The subsurface is characterised by grain size distributions of samples taken from depths between 5 cm and 100 cm below the salt crust, and measured with a laser particle size analyser (Lasser and Goehring, 2020b), DOI 10.1594/PANGAEA.910996. Subsurface salinity profiles were recorded and the ground water density was also measured (Lasser and Goehring, 2020a), DOI 10.1594/PANGAEA.911059. Additionally, the salts present in the crust and pore water were analysed to determine their composition (Lasser and Karius, 2020), DOI 10.1594/PANGAEA.911239. To characterise the environmental conditions at Owens Lake, including the differences between nearby crust features, records were made of the temperature and relative humidity during one week in November 2016 (Nield et al., 2020a), DOI 10.1594/PANGAEA.911139. The field sites are characterised by images (Lasser et al., 2020), DOI 10.1594/PANGAEA.911054, showing the general context of each site, such as pictures of selected salt polygons, including any which were sampled, a typical core from each site at which core samples were taken and close-ups of the salt crust morphology. Finally, two videos of salt crust growth over the course of spring 2018 and reconstructed from time-lapse images are included (Lasser et al., 2020), DOI 10.1594/PANGAEA.911054.

Restricted episodic changes occurred in a short time period and over large spatial extents. Extreme weather conditions usually give rise to restricted episodic changes. Sentinel-1 radar images of the Salar de Aguas Calientes in Chile acquired in the Altiplanic winter (March 2015 and June 2017), 2018 austral winter and 2017–2018 springtime, demonstrates the ability to monitor episodic events remotely. The results of the backscattered power are encouraging and show episodic variations in VV polarization at C-band. The surface features in Salar de Aguas Calientes Sur change in response to snowfalls during either the Altiplanic or austral winter with an increase of the backscattering in presence of dry snow over the salt pan crust. Flooding events related to snow-melting during spring 2017–2018 showed a decrease in the backscattering signal over ponded water and an increase when wind blows over the water. Remote-sensing observations of the salar can provide a means for monitoring changes in the surface of the salar and a better understanding of the associated climatic episodic event processes. Furthermore, it can help to have a better understanding of environmental changes in arid regions and the understanding of global climate change.

Oral health & general health go hand in hand as one influences the other. The oral cavity can be called as the gateway to the body as it serves as an entry point to all forms of infection. To attain good oral health, one needs to have knowledge of dietary habits and oral hygiene practices. ​. The extreme weather and hard labour conditions in the salt pans cause a lot of morbidities among the salt workers. These morbidities are aggravated if the salt workers do not protect themselves with personal protective measures. ​From the study, we can infer that the understanding of the mindset of daily wage workers can be key to providing them with dental treatment for their needs. ​The study aims to measure the knowledge and attitude about oral health maintenance and habits among salt pan workers in Tuticorin district. This survey was carried out among salt pan workers in Tuticorin, Tamil Nadu to assess their awareness about common dental health problems and data was collected using a pre-designed questionnaire and samples were assigned using convenience sampling methods. Data were collected after obtaining informed consent and steps were taken to ensure confidentiality at all stages. A maximum of 10 people was asked to visit the clinic to take the survey. It was conducted over a period of 10 days. Both male & female workers were involved in the study. The data was collected and tabulated in an excel sheet. Then the raw data was later transferred to SPSS Software. Salt pan workers generally have dental problems, dermatological problems and musculoskeletal problems as the most common morbidities among them. This study showed that more than 50% of the salt pan workers in Tuticorin have good awareness towards oral health.

This study seeks to explicate blame as a psychological construct. Situated in the environmental problem of the decline of the Bonneville Salt Flats (BSF), the study examines the structure of blame ...

Monitoring salt pans is important for agricultural management in arid/semi-arid regions because salt pans can negatively affect human life, wildlife, ecology, and cause accelerated desertification,...

Indonesia has the largest geothermal energy potential in the world with potential value ±28 GWe, but the potential of geothermal low enthalpy is still not utilized properly. On the other hand, improvement in the salt industry needs to be done because the salt industry in Indonesia has not been able to meet domestic salt demand. Domestic salt supply deficit is caused by the salt industry in Indonesia just relies on salt traditional farmers who are very dependent on the sunlight and the absence of a modern and sustainable salt-making industry. Therefore, the authors made a salt factory design using low enthalpy geothermal by utilizing Parangwedang geothermal as a heat source energy. Parangwedang geothermal is located in the Special Region of Yogyakarta with existence manifestation as a hot spring. Based on previous research, the potential of Parangwedang geothermal was 10 MWe. The reservoir rock may have a temperature range 115 °C and the hot spring fluid temperature 43 °C. The hot spring distance from the seashore is 403 meters with elevation reach 8 meters. The method used in this study is literature study and data collection in the field. Literature data is obtained from various sources and then compiled and grouped for the design of the salt factory that utilizes low enthalpy geothermal energy. This factory system will involve two pumps, one of which will drain the hot water from the Parangwedang hot spring and the other will drain the water from the ocean to the salt production pan. A boiling tank and condenser are used to boil the sea. Hot water from the boiling tank is used for drying the salt brine and brine is dried in the salt pan. In the result, the authors calculated factory production capacity, the GSF production capacity is ±14 tons salt each year.

The annual cycle of the Dead Sea surface temperature was investigated using band 10 onboard Landsat 8 during 2017–2018 and thermodynamic concepts. Retrieved Dead Sea temperatures are congruent with field observations with a mean square error of 1.22 °C and a correlation coefficient of 0.983. A new method employing thermodynamic concepts is presented in this paper to address the influence of buoyant plumes generated by freshwater influx on evaporation from hypersaline lakes/lagoons. Thermal images reveal a distinct spatial temperature pattern across the Dead Sea which reflects differential heating and cooling caused by variations in thermophysical characteristics of the deep sea compared with the shallow shoreline. The temperature patterns are negatively skewed in winter and positively skewed in summer. These temporal and spatial temperature patterns were illustrated using observed hourly data combined with energy balance calculations. The presence of buoyant plumes is found to alter evaporation compared with the undisturbed sea brine, and the effect of these plumes on evaporation is controlled by the simultaneous departure of temperature and activity compared with the undisturbed sea brine. Analysis shows that evaporation from buoyant plumes is more likely to be smaller than that from the open sea in winter and larger than its corresponding part from the open sea in summer. Thermal images can be used as surrogates to intensive field campaigns to examine temperature and evaporation regimes of lakes/salt flats.

La sal durante el Antiguo Régimen se constituyó en uno de los instrumentos de desarrollo de la economía de las localidades asentadas en torno al río Tinto (Andalucía occidental, España) a causa de haber sido un producto fundamental para la conservación de los alimentos, la elaboración de los suministros y el aprovisionamiento de las embarcaciones que partieron de sus puertos desde la época de los descubrimientos. Como consecuencia de la demanda de este recurso marino existía una red de salinas destinadas al consumo comarcal y a los circuitos comerciales que conectaban las rutas atlánticas y las mediterráneas. Precisamente, la rentabilidad mercantil de la explotación del mencionado producto y el régimen fiscal que lo gravaba motivó que los linajes nobiliarios (Medina Sidonia, Portocarrero, Saltés y Cifuentes) procuraran dominar la titularidad de la explotación de las salinas desde la Baja Edad Media a pesar de haber sido en su origen una prerrogativa regia. Salt during the Old Regime became one of the instruments for the development of the economy of the towns located around the Tinto river (western Andalusia, Spain) because it was a fundamental product for the preservation of food, the preparation of the supplies and logistics for the ships that left their ports since the time of the discoveries. As a consequence of the demand for this marine resource, there was a network of salt flats destined for regional consumption and the commercial circuits that connected the Atlantic and Mediterranean routes. Precisely, the commercial profitability of the exploitation of the aforementioned product and the tax regime that imposed on it, motivated that the noble lineage (Medina Sidonia, Portocarrero, Saltés and Cifuentes) tried to dominate the ownership of the exploitation of the salt pans since the late Middle Ages despite having originally been a royal prerogative.

The Black-faced Spoonbill (Platalea minor) is a critically endangered species. More than 50% of these spoonbills winter regularly on the southwestern coast of Taiwan. From 2007 to 2019, the rate of increase of the Black-faced Spoonbill population was only 10.5%, which is lower than the rate of 12.0% per year reported between 1991 and 2004. Black-faced Spoonbills have experienced several bottlenecks, and problems may exist in their breeding and/or in wintering habitats. Understanding the ecological environment of their habitats in Taiwan is an important issue, including the current use of water birds, the water depth of their habitats and even the aquatic plants. A total population of 93,614 birds of 88 species was recorded in a survey of the Cigu salt pan from October 2017 to October 2018. The biodiversity H' (loge) of the total birds was 2.67. Dunlin (Calidris alpina) was the most dominant species with a population of 21,053 (22.5%), followed by Kentish Plover (Charadrius alexandrinus) with a population of 20,350 (21.7%). The largest area of terrain elevation at -1.0 to -0.2 m was 685.4 ha (38.5%) and at -0.2 to -0.1 m was 320.4 ha (18.0%). Between 2017 and 2018, the similarity in water depth classification was 47.2%, reflecting climate change, a degree of water accumulation, and the wader utilization situation. A strategy for maintaining biodiversity in the Cigu salt pan wetland and conserving spoonbills is therefore proposed in this paper.

Agradecimientos Este trabajo es parte de las líneas generales de investigación promovidas por CEI-MAR Campus de Excelencia International, y ha sido parcialmente financiado por MICINN mediante el proyecto PID2019-108832GB-I00., The Salinas de Cabo de Gata are a natural coastal lagoon that has been anthropically transformed to favor the entry of seawater and its evaporation until saturation in sodium chloride. For this, it is compartmentalized in a series of ponds in which the seawater is guided by a circuit along which the salinity increases. Sediment samples have been taken at the bottom of these ponds and water samples to recognize which hydrogeochemical processes occur along the route. In the first ponds (evaporators) the suspended solids are decanted and carbonate precipitation occurs, along with the formation of pyrite linked to the high concentration of organic matter. On the other hand, in the last ponds (crystallizers) gypsum precipitation occurs when 70% evaporation is reached and, finally, halite when it reaches 90%. This precipitation notably changes the chemical composition of the waters, reducing the concentration of the ions present in the minerals that precipitate. From the isotopic point of view, gypsum precipitation also has its mark, reducing the proportions of 18O/16O and 2H/1H in the pond water. The study of these processes, in a mesoscale system, has great advantages for making palaeoenvironmental inferences at the basin scale, such as knowing what percentage of seawater must be evaporated so that gypsum or halite can precipitate in a basin., Las Salinas de Cabo de Gata son una laguna costera natural transformada antrópicamente para favorecer la entrada de agua de mar y su evaporación hasta la saturación en cloruro sódico. Para ello, está compartimentada en una serie de estanques en los cuales el agua de mar es guiada por un circuito a lo largo del cual se incrementa la salinidad. Se ha tomado una serie de muestras de sedimentos del fondo de estos estanques y de su agua con el fin de reconocer qué procesos hidrogeoquímicos se producen a lo largo del recorrido. En los primeros estanques (evaporadores) se decantan los materiales en suspensión y se produce la precipitación de carbonatos, junto con la formación de pirita ligada a la alta concentración de materia orgánica. Por su parte, en los últimos estanques (cristalizadores) se produce la precipitación de yeso cuando se alcanza el 70% de evaporación y, finalmente, halita al llegar al 90%. Esta precipitación cambia notablemente la composición química de las aguas, disminuyendo la concentración de los iones presentes en los minerales que precipitan. A nivel isotópico, la precipitación de yeso también tiene su impronta, reduciendo las proporciones de 18O/16O y 2H/1H en el agua del estanque. El estudio de estos procesos, en un sistema de mesoescala, tiene grandes ventajas para hacer inferencias paleoambientales a escala de cuenca, como por ejemplo saber qué porcentaje de agua de mar es necesario evaporar para que en una cuenca llegue a precipitar yeso o halita., MICINN mediante el proyecto PID2019-108832GB-I00

Multiple dynamics produce the ecological present. For the past 30 years or more, in the southern Atacama salt pan (Salar) in northern Chile, extractive industries have been accumulating minerals and water in exhaustive quantities, taking ever more than may be regenerated. However, the exhaustion of the Salar de Atacama involves a more complex set of symptoms than demonstrable environmental depletion. Fragmented scientific knowledge of the salt pan due to the privatization of water and under-regulation of mining provides a partial explanation for this complexity. In this article, we discuss these political conditions of environmental knowledge and, using a range of methodologies, we show that the scale of resource extraction threatens social and environmental harm and exhaustion may manifest in unexpected ways. We used remote sensing data to elaborate maps that reflect environmental change (1985-2017), relative to the intensification of extractive activity for copper and lithium salts in the area. Using these data, we undertook ethnographic and participatory mapping work to discuss with people from the Peine Indigenous community how they have experienced ecological change related to mineral and water extraction in the southern Salar. A review of the historical and archaeological material helps us to show the depth of Indigenous people's relationships to and knowledge of the salt pan and surrounds, and how social memory may be ecological. Combining the different results of our research, we argue that ecological exhaustion emerges from social, environmental and political conditions driven by both tangible and uncertain impacts of industrial extraction. Revealing these conditions of exhaustion raises key questions about the complexity of the effects of extraction. Keywords: Indigenous peoples; Salar de Atacama; participatory mapping; mining; water rights

A new tiger beetle species, Eunota albicauda Duran, Roman & Huber n. sp., of the tribe Cicindelini, is described from the Gulf Coast of southern Texas. It is superficially most similar to E. togata (LaFerté-Sénectère, 1841) and E. circumpicta (LaFerté-Sénectère, 1841) but is distinguished on the basis of multiple character states not shared with either species. We reconstructed a phylogeny for Eunota to address the placement of this new taxon. Little is known about the biology or distribution of this exceedingly rare species. Despite extensive tiger beetle collecting from this region, only two specimens of E. albicauda n. sp. are known, collected in the mid-20th century. Future efforts to locate additional specimens should focus on coastal salt flats and marshes in southern Texas, including areas near the United States-Mexico border, late in the season (September-October).

Microplastics (MP) were recognized as an emergent pollution problem due to their ubiquitous nature and bioaccumulative potential. Those present in salt for consumption could represent a human exposure route through dietary uptake. The current study, conducted in Bangladesh, reports microplastics contamination in coarse salt prepared for human consumption. Sea salt samples were collected from eight representative salt pans located in the country's largest salt farming area, in the Maheshkhali Channel, along the Bay of Bengal. Microplastics were detected in all samples, with mean concentrations ranging from 78 ± 9.33 to 137 ± 21.70 particles kg−1, mostly white and ranging in size from 500–1000 µm. The prevalent types were: fragments (48%) > films (22%) > fibers (15%) > granules and lines (both 9%). Fourier transform mid-IR and near-IR spectra (FT-MIR-NIR) analysis registered terephthalate (48%), polypropylene (20%), polyethylene (17%), and polystyrene (15%) in all samples. These results contribute to the MP's pollution knowledge in sea salts to understand and reduce this significant human exposure route and environmental pollution source in the future.