Agency unanimously rejects California desalination project

[Eugene]

Source: Associated Press

Agency unanimously rejects California desalination project

By AMY TAXIN
May 13, 2022

HUNTINGTON BEACH, Calif. (AP) — A California coastal panel on Thursday rejected a long-standing proposal to build a $1.4 billion seawater desalination plant to turn Pacific Ocean water into drinking water as the state grapples with persistent drought that is expected to worsen in coming years with climate change.

The state’s Coastal Commission voted unanimously to deny a permit for Poseidon Water to build a plant to produce 50 million gallons of water a day in Huntington Beach, southeast of Los Angeles.

Poseidon said it was disappointed in the decision.

“California continues to face a punishing drought, with no end in sight,” a company statement said. “Every day, we see new calls for conservation as reservoir levels drop to dangerous lows. We firmly believe that this desalination project would have created a sustainable, drought-tolerant source of water.”

The vote came after a heated meeting before the commission attended by dozens of supporters and critics of the plan. It was considered a crucial decision on the future of the plant after years of other hearings and delays.

-snip-

Read more: https://apnews.com/article/climate-california-droughts-environment-ad4fd9176850fd1c69cb330ac8841b92

[James48]

1. Why do they reject it?

Are they planning on some other way to desalinate water? What is the objection? Just because it’s going to dump the salt back into the ocean??

They are going to really want that plant pretty soon. No water makes it real tough to live.

[Eugene]

3. The concerns start with paragraph 6 in the linked article.

A regular concern about desalination is what to do with the left over brine, a potential pollutant. Poseidon planned to dump the brine back into the ocean. Locals were also complaining about getting the brine while the water goes elsewhere in California.

[Hoyt]

2. Article provides apparent reasons for vote--

"Poseidon’s long-running proposal was supported by Gov. Gavin Newsom but faced ardent opposition from environmentalists who said drawing in large amounts of ocean water and releasing salty discharge back into the ocean would kill billions of tiny marine organisms that make up the base of the food chain along a large swath of the coast.

"“The ocean is under attack” from climate change already, Commissioner Dayna Bochco said. “I cannot say in good conscience that this amount of damage is OK.”

"Other critics said the water would be too expensive and wasn’t urgently needed in the area where it would be built, which is less dependent on state and federal water due to an ample aquifer and water recycling program.

"Commissioners cited those issues in following a staff recommendation and rejecting the proposal. They also cited the energy cost of running the plant and the fact that it would sit in an earthquake fault zone."

[PoliticAverse]

4. "wasn't urgently needed in the area" - not their problem, not their problem. n/t

[enid602]

5. Salton Sea

The Israelis pipe the brine from their plant to the Dead Sea, which otherwise is losing water. They can pipe the brine from a Huntington plant to the Salton Sea, which is now disappearing,

[hunter]

8. There's a big mountain range between the Pacific Ocean and the Salton Sea.

Water for such a project would have to be drawn from the Gulf of California, which is in Mexico.

Mexico is a little touchy about water issues since the U.S.A. takes 90% or more of the fresh water that used to flow through this region of Mexico on its way to the Gulf.

[enid602]

6. Salton Sea

The Israelis pipe the brine from their plant to the Dead Sea, which otherwise is losing water. They can pipe the brine from a Huntington plant to the Salton Sea, which is now disappearing,

[hunter]

7. Burning natural gas to desalinate ocean water is insane...

... since fossil fuels are very likely the cause of this drought.

In for a penny, in for a pound, I suppose.

I figure a good place to draw the water for such a plant would be the stagnant ends of the artificial marinas in the area. In that case the brine dumped into the open ocean might be cleaner than the stuff now leaking out of the marinas.

It would also be a great incentive to make sure the boats of wealthy people weren't leaking sewage, fuel, oil, and anti-fouling agents into the water if they knew they might be drinking and bathing in the stuff later...



... nah they wouldn't be, of course, but drawing water from there would increase treatment costs of water going into the desalinization plant.

And I don't think the residents of Newport Beach would go for it.

[Caribbeans]

9. There are an estimated 21,000 Desalination plants operating around the world now

And last time I checked there were 2 Seawater desal plants in the US. Maybe few more now.

This is yet another example of how the US went from a Can-Do nation (To the Moon!) to a Cannot Do Anything but conduct "Regime Changes" nation.

It would be funny if it wasn't so damn sad.

Maybe instead of sending another 33+ BILLION DOLLARS to a nation that few Americans can even find on a map we start some programs to re-build the US for a change. Looks like the MIC is going to bilk Americans until there's nothing left - and there are no real protests.

The Saline Water Conversion Corporation of Saudi Arabia provides 50% of the municipal water in the Kingdom, operates a number of desalination plants, and has contracted $1.892 billion to a Japanese-South Korean consortium to build a new facility capable of producing a billion liters per day, opening at the end of 2013. They currently operate 32 plants in the Kingdom; one example at Shoaiba cost $1.06 billion and produces 450 million liters per day.https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Desalination_by_country#Saudi_Arabiad

Al Khafji (Saudi Arabia) is the home for what's already referred to as the largest desalination plant fully powered by renewable solar energy.

Gee I wonder if anyone has asked Saudi Arabia what they do with the salt?

World’s Largest Solar Powered Seawater Desalination Plant

"In the abundance of water a fool is thirsty" - Bob Marley

[hunter]

10. These plants utilize the usual solar accounting tricks.

When the sun goes down they are powered by fossil fuels.

Sure, in some emergency circumstances, production *could* be down-rated up to forty percent when the sun is not shining but that's not going to happen in normal operation.

Reverse osmosis plants are most efficient when they are run continuously at full power. Variable energy inputs cause problems. These plants don't like to be turned off when the sun goes down.