Deicing salt exacerbates freshwater salinization under climate change and human activities

Extreme rainfall events caused by climate change are triggering the instability of water resources, while the expansion of human activities is contributing to water quality degradation, jointly intensifying the risk of water scarcity. It has been reported that 40% of the world’s population is at risk of quantity-based water scarcity for at least 1 month a year, while 26% are at risk of quality-based water scarcity.1 Increasing human activity is projected to exacerbate water quality degradation in the coming years, which poses a threat to global water security.