• Measuring levels from 0-500 ppm (mg/L), Chloride Check promises to replace conventional measuring techniques in situations where meters or traditional wet tests would prove too cumbersome.
   
• Detection Range: 0, 50, 100, 250, 500 ppm (mg/L)
   
• Each Bottle Contains 50 Tests
   
• Each Test Takes Just 40 Seconds to Perform
   
• Product Manufactured in the United States by Industrial Test Systems, Inc.

Why Test for Chlorides?

In recent years scientists studying the effects of certain industrial activities have loosely linked changes in chloride concentrations found in bodies of water (both above and below ground) near those activities to those industrial activities. Accordingly, researchers have determined that extreme changes in chloride concentrations found in a water supply definitely merit further investigation and more in-depth testing of the water supply.

As an example, some researchers studying the effects of hydraulic fracturing (aka: fracking, the practice of injecting water an chemicals deep into the Earth at high pressures to liberate natural gas from shale formations) on surface and ground water believe that sudden changes in chloride levels may occur as a direct or indirect result of hydraulic fracturing and suggest performing other testing if a private well owner notices a change in chloride levels in his/her well water.

Jun. 7 — Surface water and water wells near pending natural gas drilling operations should be tested before any drilling starts, Scott Fickbohm, manager of Otsego County’s Soil & Water District, said.

“We need baseline tests if we’re going to be able to show that any changes have occurred,” Fickbohm said Friday.

In his agency, he and one other staff member could work part-time at monitoring surface water in the county, he said. The Soil & Water District does not have the means to test thousands of water wells, “but I’m working on a database to try to let people know where they can get their water tested, and how much it will cost,” he said.

Costs will depend on how comprehensive the tests are. “I’ve heard everything from hundreds to thousands of dollars,” he said.

…

The state may mandate that drilling firms pay for baseline testing of water wells within a certain distance of a drilling operation, he noted.

Although the state’s rules have yet to be issued, Soil & Water is preparing for its upcoming duties because it cannot wait, Fickbohm said.

“We’re taking our lead from the SRBC,” he said.

The Susquehanna River Basin Commission is monitoring the Susquehanna River in Pennsylvania for conductivity and Ph values because when these values change they may indicate the river is being polluted, he said.

“Conductivity is the presence of ions in the water, and that’s likely to pick up any change in salinity,” he said.

In their quest for shale gas, companies are drilling thousands of feet down into a zone where there are pockets of saline water, Fickbohm said. A change in the river’s saline levels might mean that brackish water from the depths has reached the river, the largest source of fresh water in the Chesapeake Bay. ( source )

Testing for Conductivity

Conductivity testing typically gets done with the use of a conductivity meter. You will find examples of several popular conductivity meters below.

Product Name	Model
Conductivity Meter: Digital 0 to 1999 µS Water Quality Meter (WA300) with Remote Sensor Probe & 36″ Lead	WA300
Conductivity Meter: Digital 0 to 1999µS (PWA-301) with Integral Sensor Tip & Protective Cap	PWA-301
Conductivity Meter: Digital Pen Style 10 to 9990 µS/cm (CO502) ATC with Calibration Solution, Screwdriver & Hard Case	CO502
Conductivity TDS Meter: Digital (CDM22CT) with Built-In Thermometer	DCM22CT
Electrical Conductivity EC Meter: Digital 0 to 20.0 EC (EC506) ATC with Calibration Solution, Screwdriver & Hard Case	EC506
pH/ORP/Temperature Conductivity Combination Digital Water Testing Meter (DPHO1380K) with Software & Carrying Case	DPHO1380K

While this article mentioned conductivity as a means of testing for changes in surface water’s salinity, other testing methods such as TDS meters, salt (chloride) meters and/or chloride test strips may work as well, but their effectiveness, we believe, may get limited by their detection ranges.