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Carlsbad Desalination Plant Purifies 40 Billionth Gallon of Ocean Water

The newest source of drinking water in our county just reached a major milestone. Around 100 million gallons of seawater are pumped through the filters at the Carlsbad desalination plant every day. Within about three hours that water is purified and sent to the taps. After three strong years, the plant just produced its 40 billionth gallon of drinking water. That’s enough water to fill a billion bathtubs, or fill every floor of the empire state building, 145 times.

Trouble In Paradise, And A Plan To Alleviate It

While San Diego has a reputation for beautiful weather in a sunny seaside setting, its growing population in the southernmost area of rain-starved California is a recipe for trouble in paradise. That challenge has spurred the creation of Pure Water San Diego — a multi-phase, multi-year program with the goal of using recycled water for up to one-third of San Diego’s water supply by the year 2035.

Desalination May Move To Santa Cruz Permanent Back Burner

Desalination, five years after it was last considered a viable water treatment project for Santa Cruz, may soon lose its footing even as a looming backup plan. With a little more than a year before the city is expected to decide how to ensure its long-term water supply security, the Santa Cruz City Council will consider Tuesday all but crossing off construction of the ocean water processing plant, per a recommendation from the city Water Commission, with city Water Department backing.

Will The Doheny Desalination Plant Stay On Track? It Could Depend On The Election

Amid California’s list of contentious desalination proposals, the plant slated for Doheny Beach in Dana Point has had remarkably smooth sailing. Key environmentalist groups battling plans in Huntington Beach and El Segundo have largely taken a hands-off approach to the south Orange County project, recognizing Doheny’s innovative environmental technology and dearth of local water options there. Additionally, a draft countywide analysis earlier this month ranked Doheny well above the Huntington Beach plant proposed by the Poseidon company.

Water Authority Nixes Camp Pendleton Desalination Pilot Project

While the San Diego County Water Authority halts work on a pilot program for a desalination plant at Camp Pendleton, both the Claude “Bud” Lewis Desalination Plant in Carlsbad, and the North City Water Reclamation Plant in UTC are backfilling the region’s needs. For the past three years, the Water Authority has been planning a small-scale pilot facility to assess seawater intake and treatment technologies at Camp Pendleton with funding from state and federal agencies. The resulting plant would be the first in California to investigate an innovative subsurface intake technology for ocean water.

Water Desalination Report

Despite interest from state’s Department of Water Resources and a $1.4 million grant from the Bureau of Reclamation, the San Diego County Water Authority’s $2.5 million intake testing program for the proposed Camp Pendleton Seawater Desal Project has apparently been cancelled. Last week, in a letter to the State Lands Commission, the Water Authority’s general manager Maureen Stapleton said that the Authority intended to “withdraw our application for State lands Commission approval due to the extraordinary permitting challenges created by State Lands Commission staff, that go above and beyond the statutory and regulatory requirements for this project.”

OPINION: Marina Bears Heavy Burden in Desalination Dispute

In parched, drought-stricken California, where water is considered liquid gold, the politics of power and wealth are playing out in real-time.

The California Public Utilities Commission’s (CPUC) recent decision to allow the California American Water Company (Cal-Am) to proceed with its Monterey Peninsula Water Supply Project desalination plant is great news – that is, if you live in Carmel, Pacific Grove or Monterey.

San Diego County Water Authority Logo Stacked Tagline

Extraordinary State Demands Thwart Research on Seawater Desalination Technologies

San Diego, Calif. – The San Diego County Water Authority is closing down work on a potential seawater desalination plant at U.S. Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton due to extraordinary permitting hurdles and related costs created by the State Lands Commission staff, along with the decreased potential that the plant will be needed in coming decades.

San Diego County Water Authority Stops Work On Desalination Plant At Camp Pendleton

The San Diego County Water Authority Friday announced it will cease work on a seawater desalination plant at Camp Pendleton because of excessive permitting and cost hurdles by the State Lands Commission. The Water Authority’s Board of Directors approved a $4.05 million contract to develop the desalination pilot facility in 2015, with additional funding from state and federal agencies. However, the necessity for the plant has decreased as local municipalities like the City of San Diego have developed their own water purification programs. The Water Authority claims that the State Lands Commission added additional permitting hurdles as the need for the plant decreased.

Plug Pulled On Seawater Desalination Plant At Camp Pendleton Over Costs, Permits

The San Diego County Water Authority announced Friday it would cease work on a seawater desalination plant at Camp Pendleton because of excessive permitting and cost hurdles by the State Lands Commission. The Water Authority’s Board of Directors approved a $4.05 million contract to develop the desalination pilot facility in 2015, with additional funding from state and federal agencies. However, the necessity for the plant has lessened as local municipalities like the City of San Diego developed their own water purification programs. The Water Authority claims that the State Lands Commission added additional permitting hurdles as the need for the plant dropped.