The Challenges

With any new water supply project, there will be issues and/or challenges that need to be addressed.  The challenges for a proposed full-scale desalination plant include:

• Preventing marine life from being trapped or injured by seawater intake pipes
• Offsetting greenhouse gas emissions
• Ensuring safe disposal of concentrated salty water
• Limiting economic costs to produce water
• Preventing population-growth-inducing impacts

The environmental review process is scheduled to begin in the Fall of 2009.  We are currently conducting several studies to gather data and information to help us address these challenges and how to thoughtfully minimize their impacts.