When you purchase through links on our land site , we may earn an affiliate commission . Here ’s how it works .
Name : Walvis Bay saltiness works
positioning : Atlantic sea-coast of Namibia
Salt production in Walvis Bay covers an area of about 12,350 acres.
Coordinates:-23.026816314419552 , 14.464431525720594
Why it ’s incredible : The salt genus Pan reckon like a colourful patchwork puff from above .
Walvis Bay is a port city on the Atlantic coast of Namibia that is home to an enormous ocean salt production works . The plant has been operate for more than 60 geezerhood thanks to the region ’s arid climate and coastal malarkey , which are ideal for evaporating seawater containing the salt .
The saltworks are turn up about 5 international nautical mile ( 8 kilometers ) southwest of Walvis Bay city center . The plant cover an field of 12,350 Akka ( 5,000 hectare ) , grant toWalvis Bay Salt Holdings , making it roughly one-half as big as Disney World in Florida .
Salt output at Walvis Bay relies on Atlantic seawater that is pumped at a pace of 8,500 three-dimensional foot ( 240 cubic metre ) per minute into artificial ponds , according to the guided tour operatorDesert , Dunes and Dust Tours . The works is fed by the Benguela Current — a cold , north flowing ocean stream that forms the eastern limb of the South Atlantic subtropical gyre .
Evaporation via a combining of the Dominicus ’s warmth and wind increases the salt mental object in the ponds from about 2.9 % to 3.5 % , which is still liveable for plankton , algae and modest ocean critters . These wight and microorganisms can turn the ponds so colourful , the plant look like a tile mosaic from above .
Related : Before and after satellite figure of speech show lake appearing across Sahara after pelter of rain inebriate desert
Pumps transfer the seawater resulting from this initial vaporisation leg to concentration pool , where the table salt content rise to 25 % . Another set of pumps then siphons this piddle into crystallization ponds that each straddle about 50 Acre ( 20 hectare ) in size of it , or about 38 football game force field .
By the death of the crystal stage , each pond hold a 4- to 6 - inch - thick ( 10 to 15 centimetre ) salt impertinence , which mechanical harvester get rid of and dump into huge bin . A conveyor knock then takes these bins to a facility where the Strategic Arms Limitation Talks crystals are washed with a mixture of seawater and gypsum that dissolves dross such as atomic number 12 and K , while keeping the salt integral .
After washing , the salt is dried in huge lot outdoors . Around 240 tons ( 220 metric lots ) of salt are dampen and dry out every hour at Walvis Bay , come to a total annual production of more than 1.1 million tons ( 1 million metric tons ) of salt , harmonise to Walvis Bay Salt Holdings .
— Salar de Uyuni : The universe ’s largest salt desert and lithium reservoir surrounded by volcanoes
— Lake Kivu : The check time bomb that could one Clarence Shepard Day Jr. explode and let loose a massive , deadly gas cloud
— Eye of the Sahara : Mauritania ’s gargantuan stone dome that loom over the desert
The fellowship export chemic - grade Strategic Arms Limitation Talks used in industries like animal feed production , piddle treatment and pharmaceutical to Nigeria , Cameroon , South Africa and Europe . It also export table Strategic Arms Limitation Talks for human consumption to several countries in Africa , include South Africa , Angola and the Democratic Republic of Congo .
Walvis Bay ’s saltworks are also a feeding ground for prawn and larval fish , which in turn appeal birdie . Together with the nearby Walvis Bay Lagoon and a snort chancel , the salinity yield plant provide coastal wetland habitat for birds like flamingo and pelicans , concord to the websiteBirdingplaces .
Discover moreincredible station , where we foreground the wondrous story and science behind some of the most striking landscapes on Earth .
You must confirm your public display name before commenting
Please logout and then login again , you will then be prompt to enter your show name .
