Tonight (Monday) a seawater desalination presentation will be made to the City Council by proponents for a plant in Huntington Beach. The goal of Poseidon Resources is to promote acceptance of its plans and product. Its facility would use reverse osmosis to desalinate 50 million gallons per day. That quantity could potentially supply 8% of Orange County’s water supply.
Both the Moulton and Santa Margarita water districts have sent letters of intent to purchase desalinized water from Poseidon if the plant is constructed. Moulton expressed interest in 4,000 acre feet while Santa Margarita stated an intent for 5,000 acre feet.
The project has been approved by the City of Huntington Beach and the Santa Ana Regional Water Control Board, but is pending before the State Lands Commission and California Coastal Commission.
{ 5 comments… read them below or add one }
Do your due diligence folks. Has Poseidon Resources ever built a water desalination plant? The answer is NO. They failed in Tampa Bay.
Technology was at fault as the 10,000 reverse-osmosis membranes began to clog. Membranes were supposed to last 5 to 7 years, but only lasted a few weeks. Poseidon could not fix them and thus the taxpayers had to pay. Estimated cost for the water was once promised a $1.71 per 1,000 gallons. At the end the price was $3.19.
So ask what the costs to manufacture Desal water are. Investigate the EDR electro dialysis reversal method as it uses electricity to separate salt and other minerals. Require the contractor to have desalination experience and the financial wherewithall.
Do not believe what the politicians tell you.
We should have built these in the late 80’s, instead of whining about the cost. Let’s NOT CRY, “Not in my backyard,” either. If we had built these in the 80’s we would not be crying Water Shortage. I served on a submarine. We made our own fresh water from salt water every day. So no one can say these things don’t work.
I’m not sure why Milt Dardis feels compelled to raise false fears about desalination. Desalination is a tested technology that works in over 13,000 plants around the world, producing more than 12 billion gallons of fresh, safe drinking water a day. As near as Santa Catalina Island, a reverse osmosis desalination plant has been providing 25 to 30% of the island’s water supply since 1991.
California is in a prolonged water crisis brought on by both climate and regulations. Our population is growing, but our supply of water from our traditional sources is not, so we have to look at alternatives. Ocean water desalination, while currently more expensive than our traditional supplies, can be a viable and needed alternative supply source.
The desalination facility in Tampa Bay was taken over by the public water agency before it was ever built. Had Tampa Bay simply allowed Poseidon to build the plant and provide the water, the public water agency would not have been on the hook for technical problems.
In Orange County (and in San Diego County where Poseidon’s desalination facility in Carlsbad is expected to begin in November. No water agency will pay a dime for any desalinated water until it is delivered. Additionally, the price for the water will be locked in over a 30-year contract. So the cost of the water is guaranteed.
This doesn’t have anything to do with politicians. It has to do with providing a new water source to Orange County. It is inherently dangerous for South Orange County to be almost 100% reliant on imported water.
Milt Dardis isn’t questioning desalination, although Once Through Cooling is antiquated technology. He is questioning the competence of the company offering to do the job, Poseidon Resources. Would YOU let a contractor do a major construction job for just your home without asking for references? Poseidon was the broker for all of the construction done in Tampa Bay. The “buck” stopped with them. And has anyone heard of conservation? Maybe assuming responsibility ourselves for shortages and stopping wasteful habits?