Here is the synopsis of our sample research paper on Soil Salinity in the Imperial Valley
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Essay / Research Paper Abstract
This 5 page paper discusses soil salinity in the Imperial Valley of California, including what it is, why it’s prevalent in this location, what effects it has, how it’s formed, what its benefits are (if any) and what can be done to change the amount of salt in the soil. Bibliography lists 6 sources
Page Count:
5 pages (~225 words per page)
File: D0_HVSoilIV.rtf
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Unformatted sample text from the term paper:
Imperial Valley of California, which is one of the major growing areas in the state. This paper discusses what salinity is, why it is prevalent in the Imperial Valley, how
it affects agriculture and wildlife, how it is formed, its benefits and negative aspects, and what can be done, if anything, to change salinity levels. Discussion As noted, salinity is
a "measure of the total amount of soluble salt in soil" (Kotuby-Amacher, Koenig and Kitchen, 1997). As the ground becomes more saline, "plants extract water less easily from soil, aggravating
water stress conditions" (Kotuby-Amacher, Koenig and Kitchen, 1997). Salty soil can also cause "nutrient imbalances, result in the accumulation of elements toxic to plants, and reduce water infiltration if the
level of one salt element--sodium--is high" (Kotuby-Amacher, Koenig and Kitchen, 1997). Since the Imperial Valley is prime growing land, the issue of salinity is very important. Salinity is prevalent in
the Imperial Valley because the region is a desert environment "with less than three inches of rain annually and daytime temperatures that commonly reach 120 degrees Fahrenheit" (Grieve, 2008). This
environment presents a number of problems: "acidity, salinity, contamination and other problems restrict productive uses of soils" (Grieve, 2008). Salinity affects agriculture and wildlife in various ways. Plants obtain
water through osmosis, a process "which is controlled by the relative level of salts in the soil water and the water contained in the plant" (Warnick, 2006). If there is
too much salt in the soil water, water "may flow from the plant roots back into the soil," causing the plant to become dehydrated, sometimes to the point of death
(Warnick, 2006). This may result in crop losses even when the salinity is not obvious (Warnick, 2006). Some of the ions found in various salts are toxic, and as the
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