Salinity Reading Answers

Feb 12, 2024

Salinity Reading Answers is a general reading topic. Salinity Reading Answers have a total of 7 IELTS questions in total. The specified topic generates 1 question type: choose the correct course according to job role. Candidates should read the IELTS Reading passage thoroughly in order to recognize synonyms, identify keywords, and answer the questions below. IELTS reading practice papers, which feature topics such as Salinity Reading Answers. Candidates can use IELTS reading answers to enhance their performance in the reading section.

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Section 1:

Salinity

It has long been recognized that our land uses, including agricultural development, have significantly changed Australia's landscapes and natural systems. However, we have not always appreciated the magnitude of change in the soil, water, and nutrient balances, the resultant degradation, and the costs to the wider Australian community. The timeframe for these changes is to be slowed or reversed.

Changes to the Australian landscape have resulted in the widespread and rapidly growing problem of dryland salinity. Farmers were among the first to be affected, by the salinization of rivers and agricultural land. Biodiversity, as well as regional and urban infrastructure, such as water supply, roads and buildings, are now also at risk. Two broad forms of salinity are recognized in Australia.

Primary or naturally occurring salinity is part of the Australian landscape and reflects the development of this landscape over time. Examples are the marine plains found around the coastline of Australia and the salt lakes in central and Western Australia. Salts are distributed widely across Australian landscapes.

They originate mainly from depositions of oceanic salt from rain and wind. Salt stored in the soil or groundwater is concentrated through evaporation and transpiration by plants. In a healthy catchment, salt is slowly leached downwards and stored below the root zone, or out of the system.

Secondary salinity is the salinization of land and water resources due to land use impacts by people. It includes salinity that results from water table rises from irrigation systems — irrigation salinity, and from dryland management systems - dryland salinity. Both forms of salinity are due to accelerated rising water tables mobilizing salt in the soil. There is no fundamental difference in the hydrologic process.

Where the water balance has been altered due to changing land use (e.g. clearing of native vegetation for broadacre farming or grazing), the excess water entering the water table mobilizes salt which then rises to the land surface. The movement of water drives salinization processes and may move the stored salt towards the soil surface or into surface water bodies.

Section 2

Answer and Explanation

Questions 1-11
Complete the table below.
Choose NO MORE THAN THREE WORDS from the reading passage for each answer.

Two forms of salinity
Primary	Secondary
Salinity occurs in (1)..............	Salinity as a consequence of (7)..............
Oceanic salts are deposited by (2).............. And (3)...............	it includes (8) .............. salinity and (9) .............. salinity.
Salt is concentrated via (4)............. And (5)...........	More water seeps into (10)............ as farms replace local plants. Causes salt to move to the (11)......
Salt moves downwards below (6)..............

Answer: MARINE PLANTS
Supporting statement: “......Examples are the marine plains found around the coastline of Australia and the salt lakes in central and Western Australia. Salts are distributed widely across Australian landscapes........”
Keywords: coastline, landscapes
Keyword Location: para 3, line 2
Explanation: It is given that the marine plants and salt lakes are the things where we can find salinity.

Answer: RAIN, WIND
Supporting statement: “......They originate mainly from depositions of oceanic salt from rain and wind........”
Keywords: rain, oceanic
Keyword Location: para 4, line 1
Explanation: It is given that the main origin of the salinity is from the deposits that come from oceans by rain and wind.

Answer: EVAPORATION
Supporting statement: “..... Salt stored in the soil or groundwater is concentrated through evaporation and transpiration by plants.........”
Keywords: soil, groundwater
Keyword Location: para 4, line 1
Explanation: It is given that the salt is stored in the groundwater and it is concentrated and by the process of evaporation and transpiration.

Answer: TRANSPIRATION
Supporting statement: “..... Salt stored in the soil or groundwater is concentrated through evaporation and transpiration by plants.........”
Keywords: soil, groundwater
Keyword Location: para 4, line 1
Explanation: It is given that the salt is stored in the groundwater and it is concentrated by the process of evaporation and transpiration.

Answer: ROOT ZONE
Supporting statement: “.....salt is slowly leached downwards and stored below the root zone, or out of the system.........”
Keywords: root, zone
Keyword Location: para 4, line 4
Explanation: It is given that the salt is moved slowly towards the root and then it gets out of its system.

Answer: LAND USE
Supporting statement: “......Changes to the Australian landscape have resulted in the widespread and rapidly growing problem of dryland salinity........”
Keywords: widespread, problem
Keyword Location: para 2, line 1
Explanation: It is given that the people who use the land for their purpose lead to change in the landscape of Australia.

Answer: IRRIGATION
Supporting statement: “.....It includes salinity that results from water table rises from irrigation systems — irrigation salinity, and from dryland management systems........”
Keywords: irrigation, dryland
Keyword Location: para 5, line 2
Explanation: It is given that the land use that leads to salinity includes a lot of things out of which irrigation is one of it.

Answer: DRYLAND
Supporting statement: “...... irrigation salinity, and from dryland management systems - dryland salinity. .......”
Keywords: irrigation, salinity
Keyword Location: para 5, line 3
Explanation: It is given that the dryland management systems also help to get the salinity.

Answer: WATER TABLES
Supporting statement: “.....Both forms of salinity are due to accelerated rising water tables mobilizing salt in the soil. There is no fundamental difference in the hydrologic process.........”
Keywords: mobilizing, fundamentals
Keyword Location: para 5, line 4
Explanation: It is given that both types of salinity are moved to the water tables.It mobilizes the salt in the soil.

Answer: LAND SURFACE
Supporting statement: “......the excess water entering the water table mobilizes salt which then rises to the land surface.......”
Keywords: rises, surface
Keyword Location: para 6, line 2
Explanation: It is given that the excess water enters the water table and the mobilized salt moves to the land surface.

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