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© Copyright 1998, Jim Loy
Salty bodies of water (the oceans, the Great Salt Lake, the Dead Sea, and others) gain water through rivers and rain. And they have no rivers draining them. Water leaves only through evaporation.
Rivers contain almost no salt. But they do carry a very tiny amount of salt. Some of this salt comes from rocks. But mostly, the salt comes from the dried up remains of ancient salt seas and lakes. A small amount of salt is added to the seas, by the rivers. Evaporation takes away water, but removes no salt. No matter how little salt is added to these seas, the salt content keeps increasing until the water can hold no more salt. All it takes is enough time.