The Salt Mines

Salinera or saline is the name given to the places that are responsible for extracting salt
from salt water, in order to process it and use it for human consumption, either in the
food area or any other industry that requires it, as is the case of chemistry and
pharmaceuticals, among others.The salt mines are all those places that are dedicated to
the production of salt, in each of its stages and modalities. They are the establishments
where their staff is in charge of extracting the salt and, through the appropriate health
and quality control measures, the production methods are carried out. A type of saline is a
place where salty water is evaporated by means of sunlight, this practice is known as
"solar evaporation", since when the water disappears only the salt remains, it is collected
and treated so that can be packaged and sold. Salt is an element that is located in many
places, however, it cannot be accessed everywhere using the same methodology. For this
reason, there are salt mines that work differently.
There are two types of salt mines: the coastal salt mines that are located on the seashore
and use ocean water, and the inland salt mines, which use water from springs, rivers or
salty lagoons. This type of salt mine is located near the seas, specifically the coasts or
estuaries. The water is manipulated thanks to the fact that these areas are located at the
same sea level or even below it. This allows the water to be directed to shallow natural
reservoirs, where it can evaporate in the sun.
It is important to mention the environmental impact that these practices have, since salt
water is a natural element that exists in massive quantities on the planet and its
production process is completely natural, using solar and wind energy to obtain large
concentrations of this mineral. .These use salt water that was mixed with the remains of
the oceans that evaporated and nourished with salt (minerals) and the water that reached
those places. The interior salt flats are extracted from underground brine deposits, which
means that they are springs or salty lagoons that are in the subsoil.
In the case of salt mines that use salt water from rivers or springs, a pump is usually used
to extract the water and put it in containers called “solar vessels”, where the sun will carry
out the same evaporation process that we have already described. The Dead Sea It is
known as one of the places with a body of water with the highest salinity in the world.
Located between Israel, Jordan and the Palestinian territory, it is also recognized as the
lowest point on Earth, since it is 416.5 m below sea level.
The percentage of salt found in the Dead Sea is really high, approximately 10 times saltier
compared to other seas, with a salt concentration of 350 to 370 grams per liter. This
makes its density greater, to the point of being viscous. Thanks to this, floating in its
waters is really easy. It is called the Dead Sea because of the lack of life in the salt water,
with the exception of some species of seaweed. Another name it receives is Lake
Asfaltites.