Salt Water vs. Fresh Water

Salinity

• Salinity is the density of salt in water.
• Salt water has a much higher salinity than fresh water.
• Fresh water is not completely devoid of salt.
• Brackish water is a mixture of salt and fresh water.

Electrical Conductivity

• Salts in water break down into electrically charged ions.
• Salt water conducts electricity more efficiently than fresh water.

Water Distribution

• True fresh water bodies are much rarer than salt water bodies.
• Most of the water in the world contains high enough levels of salt to prevent it from being classified as fresh water.

Dangers of Drinking Salt Water

• Salt water is dangerous to drink and can cause dehydration.

Buoyancy

• Fresh water lacks the buoyancy of salt water.
• It is harder to float in fresh water than in salt water.
• The Dead Sea has a very high salt level, making it difficult to wade.

Ecological Differences

• Fish, amphibians, and plants generally cannot live in both fresh and salt water.
• Their natural development lends them to their preferred salt content level.
• There are alligators, however, that have adapted to fresh and salt water environments.

Summary

• The salinity between salt and fresh water is significant.
• Fresh water makes up only about 1% of all the planet’s water bodies.
• Salt water can be deadly if a person drinks it.
• Salt water offers much more buoyancy than fresh water.
• The ecosystems are completely different when it comes to most species of organisms in fresh water and salt water.