Salinity

Abstract

The salinity of Lake Kinneret, which fluctuates between 190 and 280 mg L-1 Cl-, is significantly higher than the salinity of surface streams that flow to the lake. The high salinity is mainly derived from saline groundwater that emerges through offshore and onshore springs along the coast of the lake. Smaller amounts of solutes are attributed to dispersed seepage and molecular diffusion from the bottom of the lake. This chapter reviews the salinity of Lake Kinneret from the following aspects: the history of salinity measurements, the karst hydrological system of the saline springs that recharge the lake, analysis of the lake solute balance, the chemical composition of the lake as a result of the saline spring’s contribution, hydrological conceptual model of the salinization mechanism, and finally, a complete mixing type model to predict the future salinity of the lake is presented.