Soil Electrical Conductivity (EC)

AUS-AIF-CON-SEC General Moderate confidence

Benchmark Value

No specific value — see range

Range: 8 to 16 dS/m

Optimal Range: 8 to 16

Direction: Lower is desirable ↓

Form: OptimalRange

Scoring Curve

This curve shows how a field measurement for this indicator would score across all available benchmark forms in this context. The scoring engine uses 10 benchmarks together — the OptimalRange form drives the primary score, while 9 guard(s) constrain the result.

Contributing Benchmarks

OptimalRange Primary OptimalRange Guard MaximumOnly Guard OptimalRange Guard Point Guard MaximumOnly Guard OptimalRange Guard MinimumOnly Guard OptimalRange Guard MaximumOnly Guard

Evidence & Context

This evidence strongly suggests that the ecological tipping point occurs within the 8 to 16 dS/m (ECe) range.

Metric Definition:

Upper detrimental threshold of soil electrical conductivity (ECe) indicating ecological tipping point

Benchmark Definition:

Range of soil electrical conductivity (ECe) values representing the ecological tipping point where floodplain woodlands are lost and replaced by halophytic shrublands in Australia's Arid Inland Floodplains & Ephemeral River Systems.

Justification:

Based on known tolerance limits of key native indicator species and observed vegetation community responses.

Sources (1)

Table 2: Indicative Salinity Tolerance Thresholds (ECe�) for Key Native Indicator Species of Arid Floodplain Ecosystems GreyLiterature

Table 2: Indicative Salinity Tolerance Thresholds (ECe�) for Key Native Indicator Species of Arid Floodplain Ecosystems

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Supporting Sources (1)

Additional references from the underlying research that informed this benchmark.

TERN Surveillance monitoring program: Soil vis-NIR spectral library with accompanying soil measurement data for 367 specimens

Methodology Source Government

TERN Surveillance monitoring program: Soil vis-NIR spectral library with accompanying soil measurement data for 367 specimens

View Source

Context

Region Australia
Biome Arid Inland Floodplains & Ephemeral River Systems
Land Use Conservation / Protected Natural Areas
Assessment Pristine Reference
Evidence Type DegradationThreshold

Lifecycle

Status Active
Version 2
Effective From 24 Mar 2026

Notes

Above this range, the ecosystem shifts to a degraded, low-biodiversity halophytic shrubland. Accepted by operator on 2026-03-24 09:44 UTC — superseded v1 (#1429)

Related Benchmarks

Other benchmarks in the AUS-AIF-CON-SEC family.