US

Final vote on proposed desalination plant permit in Huntington Beach expected in April – California

The Santa Ana Regional Water Board held a workshop on Dec. 6 on the permit renewal of Poseidon Water’s proposed Huntington Beach desalination project; the permit is on pace for a final vote in April 2020.

Poseidon Water is seeking to build a $1 billion desalination plant on a 12-acre parcel at the current AES Huntington Beach Generating Station on Newland Street. Previous permits were issued in 2006 and 2012, under which no construction took place. The proposed permit is the third generation of the discharger’s permit.

The facility would produce an average volume of 50 million gallons per day (MGD) of potable water from salt water from the Pacific Ocean through a reverse osmosis process. The plant would use the AES intake and discharge systems, but would be required to modify the systems to reduce intake and mortality to all forms of marine life before beginning operation.

Huntington Beach desalination plant eyes approval, but foes turn out in force – California

With Poseidon Water’s plans for a Huntington Beach desalination plant approaching the homestretch, critics were as adamant as ever at a Friday workshop, where dozens complained the proposal is environmentally flawed, unneeded and would jack up water rates.

The meeting of the Santa Ana Regional Water Quality Control Board was called to review a draft permit and solicit public comment in advance of a scheduled April 3 vote on the final permit.

Approval rides on whether the board determines the drought-proof project will “use the best available site, design, technology and mitigation measures feasible to minimize the intake and mortality of all forms of marine life.”

Residents to have their say on Belmont desalination plant – New York

The Department of Planning, Industry and Environment is asking for community feedback on an application by Hunter Water for a drought response desalination plant at Belmont.

Executive Director, Infrastructure Assessments, David Gainsford, said community input is a vital part of the planning process and encouraged everyone to have their say on the draft proposal.

“Hunter Water has lodged a State Significant Infrastructure application for a desalination plant at Belmont which could be used to supplement the Lower Hunter’s water supplies during times of extreme drought,” Mr Gainsford said.

EIR for desal project approved – United States

Ocean water desalination, in which salt and other compounds would be removed from water in the Pacific and introduced into the water supply for drinking and other potential uses, could have numerous potential benefits, West Basin said, including “reducing reliance on imported water, improving water security through increased local control of water supplies,” and “improving climate resiliency” by providing a water source that is not dependent on the shifting volume of rain and snow that arrives each year.

Opponents, however, have said that the project poses significant environmental issues. The desalination process is energy-intensive, even more so than carrying imported water hundreds of miles from other parts of the state.

And it also arrives as alternatives for enhancing the water supply, many of them focused around water recycling and which are less energy-intensive, are becoming more widespread.

SCWD Examines Drilling Plan for Desal Plant – California

An engineering firm advising the South Coast Water District on its proposed Doheny desalination project was summoned Thursday, Nov. 14, to explain how officials might mitigate the risks of using a relatively-new drilling method to siphon seawater from beneath the ocean floor.

Brian Villalobos, principal geohyrdrologist for GEOSCIENCE Support Services, told the SCWD Board of Directors that drilling slant wells, rather than vertical or horizontal wells, off Doheny State Beach is ideal because of the dynamic hydrological and environmental conditions. Villalobos said alternatives to the proposed project would have a greater impact on San Juan Creek’s lagoon and stream flow.

“We felt these weren’t acceptable because of all the problems they would create, and they’re not really solving problems,” Villalobos said.

Monterey Bay Desalination Plant Debated by Coastal Commission – California

The Monterey Peninsula is running out of water.

The fog-shrouded, cypress-dotted land formation jutting into the Pacific Ocean forming the southern reach of the Monterey Bay is drying up as underground water aquifers become increasingly depleted.

The lack of water inhibits economic growth, prevents the development of housing – including the affordable variety – and restricts commercial opportunity.

EIR released for West Basin desalinization plant – California

The West Basin Municipal Water District on Wednesday released the much anticipated Environmental Impact Report for the ocean water desalination plant it has proposed in El Segundo.

The report, required by state and federal law, does not differ significantly from a draft version released 18 months ago. But its release is a significant step towards West Basin’s goal of constructing a desalination plant on the 33-acre El Segundo Generating Station site currently operated by NRG in El Segundo, just north of the Manhattan Beach border.

Like the draft report, the final EIR finds that the environmental impacts of the proposed facility are “less than significant” and thus legally compliant.

U.S. EPA to Provide $585 Million for Climate-Resilient Huntington Beach Seawater Desalination Plant – United States

Poseidon Water released the following statement in response to today’s announcement that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has selected the proposed Huntington Beach Desalination Project to apply for $585 million in credit assistance under the federal government’s Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (WIFIA).

“We are pleased by the U.S. EPA’s acknowledgment that the Huntington Beach Desalination Project is an environmentally sound, regionally significant project that will produce clean, safe drinking water and high-quality jobs,” said Poseidon Water CEO Carlos Riva.

“WIFIA will make a tangible difference for Orange (News – Alert) County, providing ratepayers with affordable water that is locally controlled and climate resilient. The program is an excellent example of how the federal government can foster Public-Private Partnerships that modernize our nation’s water infrastructure.”

Q&A with research director of $100-million program to develop new sources for usable water – United States

Late last month, the U.S. Department of Energy announced a $100 million research grant to the National Alliance for Water Innovation (NAWI) to lead an Energy-Water Desalination Hub. Meagan Mauter, associate professor of civil and environmental engineering, is NAWI’s research director.

The five-year project will research and develop cost-competitive and energy-efficient technologies to desalinate nontraditional water sources for diverse end uses from agriculture to municipal drinking water. “Desalination” in this project is much broader than removing salt from seawater.

It includes removing contaminants – many of which are salt compounds – from industrial wastewater and sewage, among other sources.

American Water bids for one of the largest municipal utilities in the U.S. – America

Camden-based American Water could acquire one of the largest municipal-owned water utilities in the country after confirming it’s one of 17 companies bidding to buy JEA in Jacksonville, Florida.

If American Water, the largest publicly traded water utility in the country, is successful in acquiring JEA’s water utilities, it would be one of its largest municipal deals to date, adding 357,000 water customers and 279,000 sewer customers to the 3.4 million its regulated utility business already serves.

The deal would also mark the first time American Water’s (NYSE: AWK) regulated utility business enters Florida, where its market-based business already runs a desalination plant and offers home warranty services.

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