On the application of Arabian Gulf water in irrigation: a future possibility
1987
Abu-Sharar, T.
Open sea water has a chlorinit (Cl%) of 35%. Chloride and sodium are the dominant ionic species in the sea water; their gravimetric contents are 89.98 and 77.39% of total anions and cations. Sodium adsorption ratio is relatively high - 59.89; magnesium is the predominant bivalent cation with concentration 5,2 times greater than that of calcium. Therefore, restriction of soil water management should be considered when applying sea water for irrigation. Exchange of water between the Arabian Gulf and the Indian ocean is restricted through the strait of Hormus; thus, shallow western coasts of the Arabian Gulf can acquire Cl as high as 60-70%. Therefore, highly salt tolerance crops can only be irrigated by Gulf water using certain application/blending strategies. Barley can tolerate 12dS m** (-1) salinity without any apparent yield decrement. Yield would decrease by 5% for each additional increment in water salinity beyond 12dS m** (-1). Thus if Gulf water salinity was treated according to the model of plant response to time-weighted salinity, then barley could alternatively be irrigated with fresh Gulf water in a way that would save a minimum of 16% of the applied water. Different strategies of applying/mixing good quality water with Gulf water are also discussed
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