The global technical and economic potential of bioenergy from salt-affected soils

Wicke, Birka; Smeets, E.M.W.; Dornburg, Veronika; Vashev, Boris; Gaiser, Thomas; Turkenburg, Wim; Faaij, André

doi:10.1039/c1ee01029h

Cited by 356 publications

(202 citation statements)

References 28 publications

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“…They concluded that worldwide, more than 76 3 10 6 ha of land was salt-affected. More recently, Wicke et al (2011) estimated that, globally, 1.1 3 10 9 ha of land was salt-affected and 14% (1.5 3 10 8 ha) of this area is classified as forest, wetlands, or other legally protected area. Given that wetlands cover only 5.3-12.8 3 10 8 ha globally (Zedler and Kercher 2005), these numbers suggests a substantial portion of wetlands may be salt affected.…”

Section: The Global Extent Of Salinizationmentioning

confidence: 99%

A global perspective on wetland salinization: ecological consequences of a growing threat to freshwater wetlands

et al. 2015

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Abstract. Salinization, a widespread threat to the structure and ecological functioning of inland and coastal wetlands, is currently occurring at an unprecedented rate and geographic scale. The causes of salinization are diverse and include alterations to freshwater flows, land-clearance, irrigation, disposal of wastewater effluent, sea level rise, storm surges, and applications of de-icing salts. Climate change and anthropogenic modifications to the hydrologic cycle are expected to further increase the extent and severity of wetland salinization. Salinization alters the fundamental physicochemical nature of the soil-water environment, increasing ionic concentrations and altering chemical equilibria and mineral solubility. Increased concentrations of solutes, especially sulfate, alter the biogeochemical cycling of major elements including carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus, sulfur, iron, and silica. The effects of salinization on wetland biogeochemistry typically include decreased inorganic nitrogen removal (with implications for water quality and climate regulation), decreased carbon storage (with implications for climate regulation and wetland accretion), and increased generation of toxic sulfides (with implications for nutrient cycling and the health/functioning of wetland biota). Indeed, increased salt and sulfide concentrations induce physiological stress in wetland biota and ultimately can result in large shifts in wetland communities and their associated ecosystem functions. The productivity and composition of freshwater species assemblages will be highly altered, and there is a high potential for the disruption of existing interspecific interactions. Although there is a wealth of information on how salinization impacts individual ecosystem components, relatively few studies have addressed the complex and often non-linear feedbacks that determine ecosystem-scale responses or considered how wetland salinization will affect landscape-level processes. Although the salinization of wetlands may be unavoidable in many cases, these systems may also prove to be a fertile testing ground for broader ecological theories including (but not limited to): investigations into alternative stable states and tipping points, trophic cascades, disturbance-recovery processes, and the role of historical events and landscape context in driving community response to disturbance.

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Section: The Global Extent Of Salinizationmentioning

confidence: 99%

A global perspective on wetland salinization: ecological consequences of a growing threat to freshwater wetlands

et al. 2015

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“…Currently, 1,030 million hectares (Mha) are affected by twin problems of salinity and sodicity, of which 412 Mha are affected by salinity and 618 Mha by sodicity (Wicke et al, 2011).These estimates do not present the area where both salinity and sodicity problems occur together. The salinity problems are the result of both natural (primary salinity) and human-induced (secondary salinity) processes.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 98%

“…The salinity problems are the result of both natural (primary salinity) and human-induced (secondary salinity) processes. Secondary salinity affects 76 Mha, which are distributed in different continents highest being in Asia (53 Mha) (Dregne et al,1991;Wicke et al, 2011).Out of the total 76 Mha, 43 Mha are in irrigated lands of (semi-) arid regions of the world whereas the rest 33 Mha are in non-irrigated lands. Secondary salinization has resulted due to the poor water management practices in irrigated lands and clearing of deep-rooted native vegetation in rainfed areas (Marcar et al, 1999).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Sustainable use of marginal lands to improve food security in the United Arab Emirates

Qureshi¹

2017

JEBAS

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“…In addition to the economic benefits from saline water recycling and reuse and reversing salt-induced land degradation, there are notable environmental benefits such as mitigating climate change impacts (Wicke et al, 2011). For example, during salt-induced degradation, salt-affected lands lose a significant fraction of their original carbon pool (Ivits et al, 2013) and biomass productivity potential (John et al, 2005).…”

Section: Potential Benefits From Saline Water and Salt-affected Landmentioning

confidence: 99%

Potential business opportunities from saline water and salt-affected land resources

Qadir¹,

Noble²,

Karajeh³

et al. 2015

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Resource Recovery and Reuse (RRR) is a sub-program of the CGIAR ResearchProgram on Water, Land and Ecosystems (WLE) dedicated to applied research on the safe recovery of water, nutrients and energy from domestic and agro-industrial waste streams. This SRP aims to create impact through different lines of action research, including (i) developing and testing scalable RRR business models, (ii) assessing and mitigating risks from RRR for public health and the environment, (iii) supporting public and private entities with innovative approaches for the safe reuse of wastewater and organic waste, and (iv) improving rural-urban linkages and resource allocations while minimizing the negative urban footprint on the peri-urban environment. This sub-program works closely with the World Health Organization (WHO), Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), United Nations University (UNU), and many national and international partners across the globe. The RRR series of documents present summaries and reviews of the sub-program's research and resulting application guidelines, targeting development experts and others in the research for development continuum. He is a water and soil management scientist with a focus on developing countries, and interests in water recycling and the safe and productive use of wastewater, water quality and environmental health, and amelioration of salt-induced land degradation. He has implemented multi-disciplinary projects and directed research teams in Central and West Asia, and North Africa. Manzoor has more than 100 peerreviewed publications to his credit. He serves on the editorial boards of four international journals. Science with a human face

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The global technical and economic potential of bioenergy from salt-affected soils

Abstract: An analysis of bioenergy production on salt-affected land indicates that this type of degraded land has a considerable technical and economic potential for sustainably producing bioenergy.

Cited by 356 publications

References 28 publications

A global perspective on wetland salinization: ecological consequences of a growing threat to freshwater wetlands

A global perspective on wetland salinization: ecological consequences of a growing threat to freshwater wetlands

Sustainable use of marginal lands to improve food security in the United Arab Emirates

Potential business opportunities from saline water and salt-affected land resources

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