In some jurisdictions, most bitterns are used for other production instead of being directly discarded.  In other jurisdictions each tonne of salt produced can create 3+ tonnes of waste bitterns.
Although bittern generally contains the same compounds as seawater, it is much more concentrated than seawater. If bittern is released directly into seawater, the ensuing salinity increase may harm marine life around the point of release. Even small increases in salinity can disrupt marine species' osmotic balances, which may result in the death of the organism in some cases.
In December 1997, 94 corpses of green sea turtles, Chelonia mydas, were found at the Ojo de Liebre Lagoon (OLL) in Mexico, adjacent to the industrial operation of Exportadora de Sal S.A. (ESSA), the largest saltworks in the world. The fluoride ion F content in bitterns was 60.5-fold more than that in seawater. The bitterns osmolality was 11,000 mosm/kg of water, whereas the turtle's plasma osmolality was about 400 mosm/kg of water. Researchers concluded that the dumping of bitterns into the ocean should be avoided.
The lack of adequate disposal methods for bitterns and concerns of local commercial and recreational fishing associations about bitterns’ deleterious impacts upon local fish and prawn hatchery areas led the Western Australian EPA in 2008 to recommend against the proposed 4.2 million tonne per annum Straits Salt project in The Pilbara region of WA.  The EPA concluded that: