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Poseidon Requests 2-Month Delay in Permit Hearing With State Coastal Commission

/in , , /by /Los Angeles Timesby Priscella Vega and Matt Szabo

Less than a month before Poseidon Water was expected to appear before the California Coastal Commission in hopes of moving forward with its controversial desalination plant in Huntington Beach, the company asked that the scheduled March 17 hearing be postponed to give its staff more time to thoroughly review documents.

“In order to accommodate the California Coastal Commission’s staff and their diligent review of our application, Poseidon Water made the decision to voluntarily delay the hearing on the Coastal Development Permit until later this spring,” Jessica Jones, Poseidon director of communications, said in a statement issued this week.

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Key Hearing on Poseidon Desalination Plant Delayed Two Months

/in , , /by /The Orange County Registerby Martin Wisckol

Ongoing disagreements between Poseidon Water and state regulators over a proposed desalination plant in Huntington Beach have resulted in a March 17 permit hearing being postponed at the company’s request.

Poseidon is seeking the final permit needed, from the state Coastal Commission, before it can finalize contract terms with the Orange County Water District and begin construction on a controversial, $1.4 billion plant that would produce enough drought-proof water for 400,000 people. The hearing slated for next month is now expected in May.

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Poseidon Vows 100% Clean Energy for Desalination Plant in Huntington Beach

/in , , /by /The Orange County Registerby Martin Wisckol

As Poseidon Water gears up for next month’s final permit hearings on its controversial Huntington Beach desalination proposal, the company signed a non-binding agreement Tuesday, Feb. 22, recognizing a “goal” of 100% clean energy for the massive power needs of the plant.

The surge of new greenhouse gases resulting from those needs is among numerous objections to the operation, and opponents remain skeptical Poseidon will follow through with its 100% clean energy promise.

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Poseidon Water Announces Application for Coastal Development Permit Completed

/in , , /by /Los Angeles Timesby Lilly Nguyen

Officials at Poseidon Water reported Monday the company has received notification from the California Coastal Commission that the application for a coastal development permit for its controversial $1.4-billion water desalination plant will be up for consideration in March.

If it receives approval, Poseidon Water will be able to then negotiate a contract to sell desalinated water to the Orange County Water District and begin construction of the facility.

It is expected to be located adjacent to the AES Huntington Beach Generating Station on Newland Avenue and is proposed to provide 50 million gallons of desalted drinking water a day.

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Poseidon Water Could Receive Millions in State Bonds for Huntington Beach Plant

/in , /by /Los Angeles Timesby Matt Szabo

The controversial Poseidon Water seawater desalination plant in Huntington Beach could be in line to receive millions in state funds from the California Debt Limit Allocation Committee.

The committee met Wednesday, a three-hour meeting during which it partially decided how to divide up more than $4.3 billion in tax exempt Private Activity Bonds that are available for distribution in 2022.

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Opinion: Desalination Plant Company Not Shy About Asking for Government Handouts

/in , /by /Los Angeles Timesby Steve Lopez

We all know we’re in the midst of a terrible drought in California.

And we all know we’ve got an 1,100-mile coastline.

Is desalination the answer to our problems?

No. It comes after water conservation and recycling, and is just one tool among many that might prevent the state from going dry.

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Opinion: Socal’s Water Planning Offers Lesson for State

/in , , /by /Los Angeles Daily News

Another historic drought has gripped the West and California, with the entire state facing abnormally dry conditions and 87% of it facing an extreme drought, according to the latest federal data. Yet Southern Californians are in far better shape to handle the situation than Northern Californians thanks to policies that southern water agencies have adopted.

Two-thirds of the state’s rain falls in Northern California, which has one-third of the state’s population — and vice versa. Yet many northern cities are running out of water, with several San Francisco Bay Area communities already adopting water rationing and water-use restrictions. This isn’t happenstance, but the result of planning — or lack thereof.

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Carlsbad Desalination Plant-oil spill-Lagoon-boom protection

Desal Plant Operations Continue; Protective Boom Installed at Lagoon

/in , , /by /Water News Network Quoted: San Diego County Water Authority

(Editor’s note: As of Friday, October 8, the Carlsbad Desalination Plant continues operating at full production with no indication of oil in the feed water. As a precautionary measure, protective booms have been placed at several locations in the Aqua Hedionda Lagoon, including in front of the desalination plant intake).

Poseidon Water and the San Diego County Water Authority issued the following joint statement in response to emergency response efforts following the recent oil spill off the coast of Orange County. No oil has been detected by the plant’s monitoring system.

“The San Diego County Water Authority and Poseidon Water appreciate precautionary efforts by state emergency response crews to install a protective boom at the mouth of Agua Hedionda Lagoon, which provides intake water for the Claude “Bud” Lewis Carlsbad Desalination Plant. State agencies are also installing a second barrier near the plant intake.

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Tarballs Found Along San Diego Coastline, Orange County Oil Spill Suspected

/in , , /by /The San Diego Union-Tribuneby Joshua Emerson Smith Mentioned: San Diego County Water Authority

Large clusters of tarballs were found along beaches in Oceanside and Carlsbad, San Diego County officials said Thursday, with similar reports being made in Encinitas and Del Mar.

The black balls of tar, about the size of a quarter, are suspected to have come from the massive oil spill off the coast of Orange County, where a ruptured pipeline has spewed more than 144,000 gallons of crude oil into the ocean.

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City Takes Possession of Water Desalination Unit

/in , /by /Fort-Bragg Advocate Newsby Chris Pugh

On Tuesday, September 14, the City of Fort Bragg council declared a Stage 4 Water Crisis at its regularly scheduled meeting on Monday night. A Stage 4 Water Crisis targets a 30-40% decrease in seasonal water use based on the most recent year in which water conservation measures were not required (2019).

Six months ago the City of Fort Bragg ordered a desalination-reverse osmosis treatment system to help provide drinking water during periods of saltwater intrusion at its main Noyo River water source. The skid-mounted unit has arrived and can produce 200 gallons of desalinated water a minute, or 288,000 gallons of water per day, but because the unit can only run for 12 hours a day, the daily capacity will top out at 144,000 gallons.

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