Abstract: This paper assesses the development and the change of soil salinization of the cultivated land in west China since recent 50 years. The results show that the degree of soil salinization is reducing in the old cultivated land but it is becoming more serious in the newly-reclaimed cultivated land, and overall it is in a dynamic equilibrium. In the aspect of water-salt dynamic change of the salinized cultivated land, local cultivated land has been steadily desalinized, the continuous salt accumulation occurs in local cultivated land, and most of the cultivated land is in an unsteady desalinization or a reversal of desalinization and salt accumulation. Therefore, the potential harmfulness of soil salinization is still heavy. According to the relationship between soil salinization, construction of irrigation works and irrigation level, a case study on forecast of the developing trend of soil salinization in Xinjiang is carried out by using analogism, and the possible impacts of global climate change to soil salinization are also researched.

Key words: west China, salinization of cultivated land, assessment, forecast of developing trend