The Wall Street Journal took an interesting look at the increasing allure of using the Pacific Ocean to satiate thirsts along California’s coast.
The Journal delves into Poseidon Resources’ plan to build a desalination plant in Carlsbad that would produce 150 million gallons of drinking water daily from seawater.
The story says:
Southern California water officials say conditions have changed. Improved technology has cut the cost of desalination in half in the past decade, making it more competitive. And traditional water supplies, such as the Colorado River and snow-melt runoff, are becoming less reliable because of population growth and environmental restrictions.
“We have to get our water from somewhere, and it’s going to be the Pacific Ocean,” says Gary Arant, manager of the Valley Center Municipal Water District, which serves farms and homes around San Diego. His district has agreed to buy almost 15% of the Carlsbad plant’s output. Poseidon says it has signed 30-year contracts with nine local water districts to sell all the water; about 40% would go to the city of Carlsbad.