Salinisation of freshwater occurs around the world due to anthropogenic activities associated with urban and industrial activities. These activities include groundwater abstraction for potable water supply to levels that favour seawater intrusions in coastal areas, the use of decalcifying products to prevent damage to appliances and the utilisation of salt media in industrial processes. These uses of water produce saline wastewater which is subjected to cleaning treatments that do not include salt removal. Thus, treated wastewater is reintroduced to the environment with salt levels that reduce its quality and make its further utilisation difficult. For this reason, an evaluation of the sources of wastewater with salt concentrations (e.g. NaCl) in the range from 1,300 (moderately saline) to 28,800 mg/L (very highly saline) will be provided in this section. Characteristics and compositions will be described for urban and industrial wastewater. The specific problems associated with the presence of salts will be presented and discussed.

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