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<br />W <br />-J <br />~ <br />lo-" <br /> <br />Salinity Sources <br /> <br /> <br />47% Natural Sources <br />37% Irrigation <br />12% Reservoir <br />Evaporation <br />3% Exports <br />1% M&I <br /> <br />The Colorado River flows through one of the most arid regions of this <br />continent; thus, evaporation from the river and reservoirs is considerable. <br />Also, because of lack of rainfall, salts have not been weathered out of the <br />rocks and:soil;and as the water passes through those soils, salts are being <br />washed into streams. Add to that the new salts picked up each time man <br />diverts water for irrigation, export, or M&I (municipal and industrial) <br />use, and the river is carrying about 10 million tons of salt per year by <br />the time it reaches Lake Mead. <br /> <br />Table 4 identifies the 16 saline sources under evaluation by Reclamation <br />that have:been contributing to the salinity problem in the Colorado River <br />Basin: 12 in the Upper Basin and 4 in the Lower Basin. The table summarizes <br />the flow volumes, TD5, tonnages of salt, and effects at Imperial Dam for the <br />16 sources of salt in the Basin. <br /> <br />The 16 saline water sources that are targeted for controlling salinity <br />problems of the Colorado River are irrigation, point, and diffuse sources. <br /> <br />IV-3 <br /> <br />..,. '.ii:, <br />