Coastal Commission Staff recommends denial of request to revoke Carlsbad desalination project permit; California Air Resources Board opposes efforts to revisit project’s GHG plan

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on February 9, 2010 at 5:55 am

From Poseidon Resources, this media statement:

“San Diego – Poseidon Resources today announced that California Coastal Commission staff has recommended that the Commission deny the request made by opponents of seawater desalination to revoke the Coastal Development Permit for the Carlsbad Desalination Project. The Commission is scheduled to hear the revocation request when it meets in Oceanside, CA on Wednesday, February 10th.

Today, the Coastal Commission also received a letter [attached] from the California Air Resources Board (CARB) Chairman Mary Nichols expressing the agency’s continued support for Poseidon’s Energy Minimization and Greenhouse Gas Reduction Plan (“GHG Plan”). CARB’s letter concludes that there is no new information that would require the Coastal Commission to revisit the GHG Plan. The letter also refutes claims made by opponents that Poseidon intentionally withheld information from the Commission when it approved the GHG Plan in August 2008.

This is the second time opponents have petitioned the Coastal Commission to revoke the development permit that was issued to the desalination project in November 2007. The first revocation request was rejected by a super majority of the Coastal Commission in December 2009.

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February 9, 2010 · Filed Under Poseidon's Carlsbad Plant

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Poseidon Resources requests State Attorney General to enforce Coastal Commission regulations: California Environmental Rights Foundation violating Coastal Act regulations

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on February 6, 2010 at 12:43 pm

From Poseidon Resources:

“San Diego – Poseidon Resources today announced they have petitioned [see attached letter] the state Attorney General and the California Coastal Commission challenging the legal standing of the Coastal Environmental Rights Foundation (CERF), an opponent of seawater desalination that has twice initiated proceedings to revoke the Coastal Development Permit issued to the Carlsbad Desalination Project.

Poseidon has requested the Coastal Commission Chief Counsel and the State Attorney General dismiss CERF as a participant in the Coastal Commission’s permit revocation hearing on February 10. This is the second time in as many months that CERF and other opponents of seawater desalination have requested that the Coastal Commission revoke the permit issued to the desalination project in November 2007. The first revocation request was rejected by a super majority of the Commission.

Coastal Commission regulations only allow revocation requests to be initiated by “person(s) who did not have an opportunity to fully participate in the original permit proceeding …” (Cal. Code Regs., tit. 14, § 13106). CERF is a newly created environmental litigation organization first registered as a business in the state of California on October 17, 2008. Because CERF did not exist at the time of the original Coastal Development Permit hearing on November 15, 2007, they cannot now participate as a party to the revocation request. CERF’s participation is a violation of Poseidon’s procedural due process rights under the Coastal Act. Poseidon had previously requested the Coastal Commission dismiss CERF as a party to the first revocation request but the Commission did not address the issue at that time. Consequently, Poseidon has now asked the state Attorney General to engage the Costal Commission’s legal counsel.

“Project opponents, led by Coastal Environmental Rights Foundation litigator Marco Gonzalez, have a lengthy history of filing frivolous legal challenges against the Carlsbad Desalination Project,” said Poseidon Resources’ Vice President Scott Maloni. “CERF does not have the legal authority to initiate and participate in Coastal Commission permit revocation proceedings. CERF’s actions are an abuse of the Coastal Commission’s process and a violation of Poseidon’s procedural due process rights. We are requesting that the Coastal Commission enforce their own regulations and remove CERF as a party to the revocation proceedings prior to the February 10 hearing,” said Maloni.

Poseidon has worked in partnership with the City of Carlsbad since 1998 to build the desalination plant, which will have the capacity to produce 50-million-gallons-per-day of high quality drinking water. Once operational, the Carlsbad Desalination Project will provide enough drinking water to serve 300,000 residents annually. The facility is scheduled to begin construction in 2010 and be operational in 2012.

READ THE LETTER HERE: Letter – CERF Legal Standing 020310 (2)

Poseidon Resources specializes in developing and financing water infrastructure projects, primarily seawater desalination and water treatment plants. These projects are implemented through innovative public-private partnerships in which private enterprise assumes the developmental and financial risks. For more information on Poseidon Resources and the Carlsbad desalination plant visit our website at www.carlsbad-desal.com.“

February 6, 2010 · Filed Under Poseidon's Carlsbad Plant

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South Orange County desalination takes next step

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on February 5, 2010 at 6:44 am

From the O. C. Register:

“A desalination project that could improve water supplies in South County communities by converting ocean water is moving to the next stage of testing.

The Municipal Water District of Orange County announced Wednesday that it has awarded a $1.05 million contract to Separation Processes Inc. for Phase 3 of the South Orange Coastal Ocean Desalination Project at San Juan Creek.

Municipal Water District is partnering with San Clemente, San Juan Capistrano, South Coast Water District, Laguna Beach County Water District and Moulton Niguel Water District to try to create a stable new water source to improve supply reliability for all the partners. Currently, South County cities rely heavily on imported water, making them vulnerable to water shortages or reductions in allocations. … “

February 5, 2010 · Filed Under Desalination

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Poseidon Resources’ Carlsbad desalination project reaches financing milestone

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on January 28, 2010 at 6:34 am

From Poseidon Resources, this media statement:

“San Diego — Poseidon Resources today announced the California Debt Limitation Allocation Committee (“CDLAC”) has voted unanimously (3-0) to allocate $530 million in Private Activity Bonds (“PABs”) to the Carlsbad Desalination Project. CDLAC administers and allocates the state’s annual allocation of federal tax-exempt PABs for the financing of certain private development projects that benefit the public.

The allocation of PABs to the Carlsbad Desalination Project should lower the project’s debt service costs, which in turn will allow Poseidon’s public water agency customers to purchase water at a lower rate.

Every year, hundreds of private developers apply to CDLAC to utilize this financing structure. Since 2005, CDLAC has allocated billions of dollars in PABs to privately-owned companies in California. Projects have included industrial development, redevelopment projects, enterprise zones, facilities that treat water, sewage or hazardous materials, pollution control, solid waste reduction projects and low income multi-family housing.

Unlike municipal bonds that also carry a tax exempt status, Poseidon will solely be at risk to pay the principal and interest on the PABs. The state of California and the project’s public water agency customers bear no financial responsibility for the repayment of the bonds.

“Today’s action by the California Debt Limitation Allocation Committee is a major milestone in the financing for the Carlsbad Desalination Project. The allocation of Private Activity Bonds should allow Poseidon Resources to lower the cost of this new drinking water supply for San Diego’s ratepayers,” said Poseidon Resources’ Senior Vice President Peter MacLaggan. “The allocation of Private Activity Bonds clears the way for Poseidon to close project financing and move forward with full-scale construction of the plant,” said MacLaggan.

Poseidon has worked in partnership with the City of Carlsbad, Valley Center Municipal Water District, Sweetwater Authority, Santa Fe Irrigation District, City of Oceanside, Rincon del Diablo Municipal Water District, Olivenhain Municipal Water District, Rainbow Municipal Water District and the Vallecitos Water District to build the desalination plant, which will have the capacity to produce 50-million-gallons-per-day of high quality drinking water and serve 300,000 residents annually. Phase I of project construction started in November 2009. During the two and half-year construction and start up, the project will create 2,100 jobs and approximately $200 million in economic stimulus. The facility is scheduled to be operational in 2012.

Poseidon Resources specializes in developing and financing water infrastructure projects, primarily seawater desalination and water treatment plants. These projects are implemented through innovative public-private partnerships in which private enterprise assumes the developmental and financial risks. For more information on Poseidon Resources and the Carlsbad desalination plant visit our website at www.carlsbad-desal.com.

This story was reported in the papers: click here for coverage from the San Diego Daily Transcript; click here for coverage from the North County Times.

January 28, 2010 · Filed Under Poseidon's Carlsbad Plant

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Arizona water official: Desalination an expensive but necessary prospect

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on January 26, 2010 at 6:01 am

From Arizona Capitol Times:

“Desalinating ocean water is an expensive prospect but something Arizona must look toward in addressing population growth and increasingly dry weather brought on by climate change, a state official told lawmakers Jan. 21.

“As we plan for the future, we must plan for the eventuality that we must look at these kinds of future water supplies for parts of our state,” said Karen Smith, deputy director of the Arizona Department of Water Resources.

She addressed the House Water and Agriculture Committee, which later approved a bill to continue the agency.

Smith said officials are looking, among other options, at partnerships with states to fund desalination plants in California or Mexico under agreements that would allow Arizona and its partners to draw more water from the Colorado River.

She said officials also are looking at desalinating brackish water in aquifers to help assure long-term water supplies. That becomes more feasible as desalination becomes more affordable, but Smith said she doesn’t want to appear overly optimistic about the ease of developing new sources of water. … “

January 26, 2010 · Filed Under Colorado River Basin, Desalination

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NanoH2O to change the economics of desalination; “It all comes down to the performance of the membrane”

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on January 20, 2010 at 7:47 am

From GreenTech Media:

“There is a looming water crisis for everyone on the globe as populations rise, as pollution increases and as climate and weather patterns change. There is already a water crisis in many developing nations and in some not-so-developing regions like Australia and California. The stats for “embedded” or “virtual” water are sobering — for example, the production of 1 kilogram of beef costs 15,500 liters of water

Desalination is one way of addressing some of our water problems. Desalination can be accomplished with a number of expensive, energy-intensive technologies including distillation, ion-exchange and reverse osmosis. Reverse osmosis (RO) is a well-established desalination technology but the challenge is the sheer amount of energy consumed in the process. The key to the economics of the reverse osmosis process is the membrane.

NanoH20, a well-funded water start-up is commercializing a new membrane material for reverse osmosis based on technology developed by UCLA’s Eric Hoek. … ”

January 20, 2010 · Filed Under Desalination

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Congressional Research Service: Desalination – status and federal issues

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on January 19, 2010 at 2:42 pm

From the Congressional Research Service:

“In the United States, desalination is increasingly investigated as an option for meeting municipal water demands, particularly for coastal communities that can desalinate seawater or estuarine water, interior communities above brackish groundwater aquifers, and communities with contaminated water supplies.

Adoption of desalination, however, remains constrained by financial, environmental, regulatory, and other factors. At issue is what role Congress establishes for the federal government in desalination research and development, and in construction and operational costs of desalination demonstration projects and full-scale facilities.

Desalination processes generally treat seawater or brackish water to produce a stream of freshwater, and a separate, saltier stream of water that has to be disposed (often called waste concentrate). Desalination’s attractions are that it can create a new source of freshwater from otherwise unusable waters, and that this source may be more dependable than freshwater sources that rely on annual or multi-year precipitation, runoff, and recharge rates. Many states (most notably Florida, California, and Texas) and cities are actively researching and investigating the feasibility of large-scale desalination plants for municipal water supplies.

Desalination and its different applications, however, come with their own sets of risks and concerns. Although the costs of desalination dropped steadily in recent decades, making it more competitive with other water supply augmentation options, the declining trend may not continue if energy costs rise.

Electricity expenses vary from one-third to one-half of the operating cost of desalination facilities. Reducing the energy requirements of desalination would decrease its cost uncertainties. Substantial uncertainty also remains about the technology’s environmental impacts, in particular management of the saline waste concentrate and the effect of intake facilities on aquatic organisms. Moreover, there are few federal health and environmental guidelines,
regulations, and policies specific to desalination as a municipal water supply source. Social acceptance and regulatory processes also affect desalination’s adoption and perceived risks.

Research and public education may help to resolve some uncertainties, develop methods to mitigate impacts, reduce the costs of desalination, and improve public understanding of the risks. To date, the federal government has been involved primarily in desalination research and development (including military applications), some demonstration projects, and select full-scale
facilities. For the most part, local governments, sometimes with state-level involvement, have been responsible for planning, testing, building, and operating desalination facilities, similar to their responsibility for freshwater treatment for municipal drinking water supply.

Bills in the 111th Congress (e.g., H.R. 88, H.R. 469, S. 1462, S. 1731, S. 1733, and P.L. 111-11) represent a range of federal authorizations for desalination research, demonstration and full-scale facilities, and
planning and financing. H.R. 1145 would formally establish a federal interagency committee to coordinate federal water research, including desalination research.”

Read this report from the Congressional Research Service by clicking here.

January 19, 2010 · Filed Under Desalination

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Rebuttal commentary: Desal plant foes not ‘fringe’

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on January 17, 2010 at 6:30 am

From the North County Times, this rebuttal commentary by Joe Geever of the Surfrider Foundation to a recent commentary by Ted Owen of the Carlsbad Chamber of Commerce:

“The Perspective article, “Enough is enough with desalination lawsuits,” written by Ted Owens and published in your paper Jan. 10 contains enough offensive inaccuracies that it demands a response. It is unfortunate that Mr. Owen, rather than focusing his comments on what he sees as merits of the Poseidon proposal, or the actual reasons why the project continues to be scrutinized and challenged by our state regulatory agencies, instead resorts to personal attacks.

It is completely inaccurate to characterize the scope of opposition to the project as “two fringe environmental groups.” Surfrider Foundation and San Diego Coastkeeper are local grassroots organizations that have taken a lead in challenging this proposal. But there is a growing coalition of organizations opposed to this poorly designed facility —- ranging from water management policy institutions to organizations representing the fishing community to groups protecting public health to environmental organizations like ours. The scope of concerns over this project, and the organizations opposing it can hardly be described as “fringe”.

Mr. Owen also characterizes us as “obstructionists” who are the cause of delays in the project’s final approval. … “

January 17, 2010 · Filed Under Poseidon's Carlsbad Plant

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Initiative process starts to get a Marin vote on desalination

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on January 16, 2010 at 7:51 am

From the Silicon Valley Mercury News:

“An initiative to require a vote before the Marin Municipal Water District moves forward with desalination plans could come before voters in November if enough signatures are gathered by June.

A group of residents led by Bill Rothman of Belvedere plans to gather about 11,000 signatures – the required 10 percent of registered voters inside the water district’s boundaries – by June to get “The Marin Responsible Water Policy Ballot Initiative” before voters.

The initiative will ask if residents want to require the district to ask voters for permission before it proceeds with plans to implement desalination, a process in which bay water is cleaned and used for drinking water.

“It will give the voters the right to vote before the water district undertakes the expenses and the process of desalination,” Rothman said. “It would mean if they want to move forward with desalination they would have to put it before the voters.”

Rothman began gathering signatures this week. … “

January 16, 2010 · Filed Under Marin desalination plant

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Desalination should be a last resort in our water portfolio, says commentary

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on January 15, 2010 at 6:39 am

From the San Diego News Network, this commentary by Stuart Reznick, Executive Director of Coastkeeper, in response to the recent Carlsbad Chamber of Commerce Ted Owen’s commentary:

“Environmental groups challenging the Carlsbad Desalination Plant have recently come under attack for deeply scrutinizing the project, proposed as the region’s most expensive and energy intensive water supply option. As one of the environmental groups leading the charge, we’re clearing the air.

Truth Number 1: Our cases have merit.

Procedural deficiencies at every reviewing agency have marred the approval process for the plant. While some suggest we are engaging in superfluous lawsuits, this desalination plant will be the largest in the western hemisphere and may set precedent for all other projects. We must ensure it is as protective of our environment as possible. Yet, our regulatory agencies have taken an “approve first, ask questions later” approach that could lead to disastrous consequences.

Our efforts, and those of our partner organizations, have already improved the project dramatically by ensuring carbon offsets and wetlands mitigation to offset some impacts from the proposed project. … “

January 15, 2010 · Filed Under Poseidon's Carlsbad Plant

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Desal and “carbon”ated water: Coastal Commission should make the Carlsbad project offset all of its carbon impacts

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on January 11, 2010 at 7:52 am

From the California Progress Report, this commentary by Jonas Minton of the Planning & Conservation League:

“Carbon emissions and water supply are two sides of the same coin. In California nearly 20 percent of our electrical energy is used to move water around the State, treat it for use and then treat it again for disposal.

All of that energy generation emits huge amounts of carbon to our atmosphere. So when Poseidon Corporation claims that its proposed desalination plant in Carlsbad will have a “zero carbon footprint” it may sound too good to be true. Well, that’s because it is.

In February the Coastal Commission will be reviewing the accuracy of information submitted by Poseidon for its permit to build the largest desalination facility in the Western Hemisphere in Carlsbad, California. The issue is Poseidon’s claimed CO2 offsets.

Ocean desalination is the most energy/carbon intensive way to provide water – even more than pumping water more than 400 miles all the way from Northern California, up over the Tehachapi Mountains and on to San Diego. Poseidon’s proposed ocean desalination plant would require 30 megawatts of generation. Producing this much energy would emit an additional 120,000 to 154,000 tons of carbon dioxide per year into our atmosphere. … “

January 11, 2010 · Filed Under Poseidon's Carlsbad Plant

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Carlsbad legal challenge loses Surfrider Foundation

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on January 11, 2010 at 7:49 am

From Desalination & Water Reuse:

“One of the two groups staging a last-ditch challenge to the Carlsbad desalination plant, Surfrider Foundation, has abandoned its legal challenge to the California State Lands Commission’s approval of the project.

In August, the San Diego Superior Court issued a final ruling upholding the State Lands Commission’s 2008 approval of the Project. The Surfrider Foundation and Coastkeeper jointly filed an appeal against the Court’s ruling in December 2009.

Coastkeeper remains the only appellant. … “

January 11, 2010 · Filed Under Poseidon's Carlsbad Plant

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Enough is enough with desalination lawsuits, says commentary

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on January 10, 2010 at 7:28 am

From the North County Times, this commentary by Ted Owen from the Carlsbad Chamber of Commerce:

“As 2009 ended, the latest attempt to derail the Carlsbad Desalination Plant was rejected by the Coastal Commission. The celebration was short-lived, as two fringe environmental groups, undaunted by yet another defeat, kept up their assault on the project by filing yet another request that the Commission revoke the permit granted to Poseidon Resources in 2007.

For those of you keeping score, that’s five lawsuits and another five permit appeals spearheaded by lawyers representing the Surfrider Foundation and Coastkeeper. To date, these challenges have been rejected. In fact, during the last six years, every permitting and regulatory agency has approved this desalination facility and every court petitioned to overturn the approvals has declined to do so.

A recent public opinion survey conducted by the San Diego County Water Authority showed that a whopping nine out of 10 county residents support seawater desalination, and every state and federal elected official from San Diego County has endorsed the project. No matter what your opinion of the project is after all these years, there is no doubt that it is supported by sound science and the law. With construction of the project under way, environmental extremists have no chance of stopping the desalination facility from being built.

So why do they keep up their antics? Because these obstructionists hope to delay this new water supply and add so much cost that Poseidon will eventually be forced to abandon the project. This is foolish. … “

January 10, 2010 · Filed Under Poseidon's Carlsbad Plant

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Surfrider Foundation abandons lawsuit challenging Carlsbad desalination project

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on January 9, 2010 at 8:23 am

From Poseidon Resources, this media statement:

“San Diego, CA – Poseidon Resources today announced it has been notified by the Surfrider Foundation that the organization has abandoned its legal challenge to the State Lands Commission’s approval of the Carlsbad Desalination Project (Project). In August, the San Diego Superior Court issued a final ruling upholding the State Lands Commission’s 2008 approval of the Project. The Surfrider Foundation and Coastkeeper jointly filed an appeal of the Court’s ruling this past December.

The San Diego chapters of the Surfrider Foundation and Coastkeeper have an extensive and unsuccessful history of filing legal challenges (five lawsuits) and appealing Project permit approvals (five permit appeals). The Surfrider Foundation’s decision to abandon its legal opposition leaves Coastkeeper holding out as the sole Project litigant.

“Poseidon Resources and our public water agency customers appreciate the Surfrider Foundation’s decision to put an end to its legal challenges to the Carlsbad Desalination Project,” said Poseidon Resources’ Vice President Scott Maloni. “In doing so, Surfrider has chosen to abide by numerous court rulings and to accept the unwavering determination by the state’s regulatory agencies that the Project is environmentally benign,” said Maloni. “We urge Coastkeeper to follow the Surfrider Foundation’s lead and put the interests of the San Diego region first,” said Maloni.

Poseidon has worked in partnership with the City of Carlsbad since 1998 to build the desalination plant, which will have the capacity to produce 50-million-gallons-per-day of high quality drinking water and serve 300,000 residents annually. Phase one of Project construction started in November 2009. Once operational, the Carlsbad Desalination Project will provide enough drinking water to serve 300,000 residents annually. The facility is scheduled to be operational in 2012.

Poseidon Resources specializes in developing and financing water infrastructure projects, primarily seawater desalination and water treatment plants. These projects are implemented through innovative public-private partnerships in which private enterprise assumes the developmental and financial risks. For more information on Poseidon Resources and the Carlsbad desalination plant visit our website at www.carlsbad-desal.com.

January 9, 2010 · Filed Under Poseidon's Carlsbad Plant

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Monterey desalination plant moves forward: Desalinated water could come to the Monterey coast of California “as soon as 2012″, according to the Marina Coast Water District

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on January 8, 2010 at 7:11 am

From Desalination & Water Reuse:

“The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) certified the final Environmental Impact Report (EIR) for the Coastal Water Project on 17 December 2009.

The Coastal Water Project would consist of several distinct components: a seawater intake system; a desalination plant; a brine discharge system; product water conveyance pipelines and storage facilities; and an aquifer storage and recovery system.

CPUC and its administrative law judge assigned to the Coastal Water Project application are expected to consider adoption of components of the Coastal Water Project early in 2010. Simultaneously, the partners in a local publicly owned alternative (the Monterey Regional Water Supply Project) will consider the components for adoption on the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) using the final EIR as a basis for their deliberations. … “

January 8, 2010 · Filed Under Desalination

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Green Prophet blog: Mekorot’s Water Tech makes a splash in California’s dry valley

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on December 27, 2009 at 7:11 am

From the Green Prophet blog:

“It is almost mind-boggling that Israel, a country with such a dearth of fresh water resources, has become a leader in water technologies. That is, until you learn about Mekorot.

Most of Israel’s $1.4 billion in water tech exports last year wouldn’t have been possible if it weren’t for the government-owned water carrier and water tech company, chairman Eli Ronen tells ISRAEL21c. Mekorot transformed Israel into a global water leader by making water research and policy a national priority decades ago.

Now Mekorot’s expertise in water management, specifically in desalinating water, is on its way to south California. Ronen confirms that Mekorot has signed an MOU with Water Solutions Technologies (WST) of Fresno, California.

The company’s activities in California will extend to water-poor areas such as Fresno in the San Joaquin Valley and other regions like it. The contract between Mekorot and WST was signed at the Fresno Convention and Entertainment Center where Ronen recently lectured to about 800 people about Israel’s water solutions. … “

December 27, 2009 · Filed Under Desalination

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Appeal filed against Carlsbad desalination ruling

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on December 24, 2009 at 6:08 am

From the San Diego Union Tribune:

“Environmental groups that oppose an ocean-water desalination plant in Carlsbad have appealed a San Diego Superior Court ruling that favors plant development.

San Diego Coastkeeper and the Surfrider Foundation filed an appeal this month of a November ruling that allows developer Poseidon Resources to build the 50 million-gallon-a-day plant on the south shore of Agua Hedionda Lagoon.

The lawsuit challenges a lease granted for plant development by the California State Lands Commission, which has jurisdiction over state tidelands. … “

December 24, 2009 · Filed Under Poseidon's Carlsbad Plant

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Environmental groups appeal Carlsbad desal plant approval

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on December 22, 2009 at 2:30 pm

From the San Diego News Network:

“Two environmental groups are appealing the California State Lands Commission’s approval of a desalination plant already under construction in Carlsbad, it was announced Tuesday.

San Diego Coastkeeper and the Surfrider Foundation argue the State Lands Commission’s 2008 approval did not take into consideration changes to the project that necessitate further environmental review.

“We are not opposed to desalination,” said Gabriel Solmer, an attorney for Coastkeeper. “We are for responsible water supply choices, and the State Lands’ approval was not made responsibly or legally.” … “

December 22, 2009 · Filed Under Poseidon's Carlsbad Plant

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Road-map to desalination: Leader of Army Corps of Engineers partnership with Cambria district on desalination plant gives his report

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on December 20, 2009 at 7:39 am

From the San Luis Obispo Tribune:

“With all the dispatch and efficiency one might expect from a ranking military officer, the commander of the Los Angeles District of the Army Corps of Engineers spelled out for Cambria Community Services District directors on Monday, Dec. 14, a road-map to a desalination plant to buttress Cambria’s water supply.

Engineer Col. Thomas Magness focused on the upcoming year of studies to determine if the mouth of Santa Rosa Creek is suitable as the site for under-surface intakes for seawater that would be piped to the plant, but his report included an outline of longer-term plans.

Cambria’s services district’s desalination plan “is possible,” Magness said. “What we need to determine is if it’s feasible given the constraints, the environment, the financing.” … “

December 20, 2009 · Filed Under Desalination

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California panel addresses desal and threats to marine life

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on December 18, 2009 at 6:39 am

From the San Diego News Network, this commentary by Bruce Reznik, executive director of the San Diego Coastkeeper (not to be confused with Stewart Resnick, who appears in other news today):

“San Diego recently hosted the California Ocean Protection Council (COPC), a committee we haven’t seen in this region since 2005. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger created the COPC to regulate ocean health in California, and the commissioners represent the state’s leading elected and appointed officials. As the executive director of San Diego Coastkeeper, the county’s largest water quality non-profit, I was pleased to see the Council include panels addressing both the desalination issue as well as the growing threats from marine trash.

The desalination discussion, which included a distinguished panel of experts, focused on understanding the role of desalination in California’s future water supply. It is no surprise that Coastkeeper takes issue with the Poseidon plant planned for Carlsbad. But I agree with several of the COPC experts who advocated for the desalination dialogue to take place as part of a holistic and cohesive discussion that will define our water supply goals, vision and strategy for a diversified portfolio. The issue is not a yes or no vote for desalination, rather a conversation regarding conservation and water reuse as our first steps and environmentally friendly desalination in appropriate locations as a last option. … “

December 18, 2009 · Filed Under Desalination

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Poseidon’s Huntington Beach desalination plant gaining support

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on December 16, 2009 at 8:12 am

From the O. C. Register:

“HUNTINGTON BEACH – Poseidon Resources has gained support from Orange County cities and water districts for its $350 million project that would convert seawater into drinking water to combat the drought plaguing the county.

Seal Beach City Council members on Monday voted to join a list of 14 other agencies that have signed a letter of intent to use water from the proposed desalination plant at the AES power plant on Newland Street near Pacific Coast Highway.

Huntington Beach, Anaheim, Santa Ana and the Metropolitan Water District, among others, have said they are interested in buying water from Poseidon.

The project would generate about 50 million gallons of drinkable water every day by tapping in to the 275 million gallons already flowing in to the AES plant to cool its equipment, officials say. … “

December 16, 2009 · Filed Under Poseidon's Huntington Beach

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Shawn DeWane: Could seawater desalination come to Orange County?

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on December 16, 2009 at 8:10 am

From the O. C. Register, this commentary by Shawn DeWane, board president at Mesa Consolidated Water District:

“Seawater desalination has been discussed as a potential large scale water source since the days of Aristotle. This technology has proven itself effective over the past 20 years in applications like naval and cruise ships and in areas of the world where fresh water is scarce like Australia, Algeria and other countries.

The cost of importing water into Southern California has risen dramatically and will continue to rise for years to come. Currently, seawater desalination is more expensive than imported water. But the application of new technologies has reduced the cost of desalination by more than half. The water industry is still waiting for the break-even point where desalinated water becomes less expensive than imported water. That time is approaching. More than a dozen desalination plants are scheduled to be operational along California’s coastline over the next decade, including at least two in Orange County.

Poseidon Resources, a private water infrastructure developer, has already broken ground in San Diego County on a 50-million-gallon-per-day (MGD) seawater desalination facility that is expected to be operational in about two years. That company has been working for the past 10 years to develop a similar desalination facility in Huntington Beach to service Orange County. Poseidon’s Huntington Beach project has every local permit approval and is now focused on securing the remaining state permits needed to start construction.

I have heard many of the project’s detractors talk about Poseidon’s effort to build a desalination facility in Tampa Bay. … “

December 16, 2009 · Filed Under Poseidon's Huntington Beach

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Carlsbad desal plant moves forward despite opposition

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on December 15, 2009 at 7:19 am

From the San Diego News Network:

“Ten years ago, Poseidon Resources embarked on a journey to turn the ocean’s water into a usable supply for human consumption.

A myriad of lawsuits and battles later, the Carlsbad Desalination Project is now more than a month into its construction amid California’s water crisis — and not only are San Diegans awaiting for the plant’s faucet to turn on, but Americans are anticipating the largest desalination project in U.S. history.

“It’s an exhilarating feeling… it’s very rewarding,” said Poseidon Vice President Scott Maloni. “It’s a verification of all the sound science and expert engineering we’ve worked on the past ten years.”

Poseidon’s Carlsbad Desalination Project, which will be the largest in the country in less than three years, has faced major criticism among groups such as the Coastal Environmental Rights Foundation, and most recently, from the San Diego Coastkeeper and the Surfrider Foundation. … “

December 15, 2009 · Filed Under Poseidon's Carlsbad Plant

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Commentary: Coastal Commission wearies of Poseidon ocean desalination plan; $530 million in public subsidized funding is next hurdle

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on December 14, 2009 at 6:31 am

From the California Progress Report, this commentary by Joe Geever of the Surfrider Foundation:

“Yesterday, after hours of deliberation the California Coastal Commission voted to reject a request by public-interest groups to revoke a permit for the largest desalination plant in the western Hemisphere in Carlsbad.

The groups had brought the revocation request after it was revealed that Poseidon Resources submitted incorrect environmental impact data – drastically underestimating the amount of marine life that would be killed by the plant. After the vote Commission staff disclosed new allegations of wrongdoing related to the plants greenhouse gas emissions.

One Commissioner, who voted against revoking the permit this time, commented that the repeated disclosure of misleading information from Poseidon was having a “cumulative effect.” “It’s like a rain of new problems,” according to Commissioner Burke – signaling what may be a sense of weariness by the Commission over the project’s proponent’s lack of accurate disclosures. … “

December 14, 2009 · Filed Under Poseidon's Carlsbad Plant

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Seawater desalination’s time has come; The Press-Telegram was quick to judge Poseidon Resources and its seawater desalination projects without all the facts

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on December 13, 2009 at 9:07 am

Okay, so that’s the title that the Long Beach Press Telegram used, so I’ll go with it, but it’s confusing and contradictory to me. This is a rebuttal to a previous Press-Telegram editorial by Denis Bilodeau, director on the board of the Orange County Water District and an Orange City Council member:

“President John F. Kennedy once said, “If we could ever competitively, at a cheap rate, get fresh water from salt water … it would be in the long-range interests of humanity which would really dwarf any other scientific accomplishments.” That was 1962. Today, almost 50 years later, California is on the precipice of pioneering the Pacific Ocean as a critical element of its drinking water supply.

In a Nov. 20 editorial (”How not to desalt the sea), the Press-Telegram was quick to judge Poseidon Resources and its seawater desalination projects without all the facts.

In response to climate change and regulatory droughts, there are more than two dozen seawater desalination plants in various stages of development throughout California, including several local projects planned for Long Beach, Dana Point and Huntington Beach. In San Diego County the largest and most technologically-advanced seawater desalination plant in the Western Hemisphere, capable of sustaining 300,000 residents, is now under construction. … “

Read the full text of this commentary by clicking here. (Thanks, Groksurf!)

December 13, 2009 · Filed Under Poseidon's Carlsbad Plant

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Groups file another challenge to Carlsbad desalination project

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on December 12, 2009 at 8:45 am

From KPBS:

“The California Coastal Commission rejected a challenge Thursday to a proposed desalination project in Carlsbad. But, opponents have filed another request to revoke the plant’s development permit.

The Surfrider Foundation, San Diego Coastkeeper and the Coastal Environmental Rights Foundation lost their first attempt to have the development permit for the desalination plant revoked.

Now the three environmental groups have filed another revocation request.

Marco Gonzalez is with the Coastal Environmental Rights Foundation. He says there are problems with Poseidon’s plans to offset greenhouse gas emissions. “They really do have some very significant hurdles to cross before this project can be built,” says Gonzalez. … “

Coastal Commission denies enviros’ request to yank desalination plant permit

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on December 12, 2009 at 6:50 am

From the San Francisco Bay Guardian:

“A coalition of environmental organizations argued yesterday that a permit issued to Poseidon Resources to build a massive desalination plant near San Diego should be revoked, because the company failed to provide complete information to California Coastal Commission staff.

At a CCC meeting held in the San Francisco Board of Supervisors Chambers in City Hall yesterday, commissioners listened as advocates from the Surfrider Foundation, San Diego Coastkeeper, and the Coastal Environmental Rights Foundation, who filed the request for permit revocation, argued that Poseidon purposely tried to mislead CCC staff by submitting incomplete and inaccurate information about technical aspects of its desalination facility. … “

But, apparently, it isn’t over yet. The SFBG writes:

” … But just after the vote, CCC Executive Director Peter Douglas noted that another request for revocation had been submitted on different technical grounds, and CCC staff was reviewing it. “Frankly, we have not yet decided at our level whether we are going to recommend a revocation of the permit,” he said.

Speaking later by phone, Sup. Mirkarimi told the Guardian that he thought Douglas’ “epilogue” validated the concerns that he had raised. “Half the people who voted against the revocation were probably regretting it,” he said. The project as a whole needs serious reexamination, he said, and added that with other desalination proposals coming down the pipe, “this sets a really bad trend.””

December 12, 2009 · Filed Under Poseidon's Carlsbad Plant

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Coastal Commissioners deny revocation request for Carlsbad desal plant

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on December 11, 2009 at 7:51 am

From KPBS:

“SAN DIEGO — The California Coastal Commission Thursday rejected a request from three environmental groups to revoke a coastal development permit for a desalination plant in Carlsbad.

The 9-to-3 vote to deny the revocation request came after two hours of testimony at the Coastal Commission meeting in San Francisco.

Three environmental groups — the Surfrider Foundation, San Diego Coastkeeper and the Coastal Environmental Rights Foundation — asked the California Coastal Commission to revoke Poseidon Resources’ coastal development permit to build a desalination plant in Carlsbad based on three contentions: … “

Coastal Commission to consider request to revoke Poseidon’s desal permit

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on December 8, 2009 at 8:13 am

From the North County Times:

“The California Coastal Commission is scheduled to consider Thursday a request to revoke a permit for a desalination plant in Carlsbad. It’s the latest effort by environmental groups to block the plant, which they say will hurt coastal wildlife.

Poseidon Resources Corp. which recently began preparing the site next to the Encina Power Station for construction, said the request is groundless.

If the request is granted, Poseidon would have to stop construction and reapply for a new permit. The plant will have a capacity of making 50 million gallons of fresh water a day, enough for 9 percent of the county’s needs.

Marco Gonzalez, an attorney for the Coastal Environmental Rights foundation, said Poseidon Resources, the plant’s builder, intentionally withheld information from the commission about how the plant would “impinge,” or trap fish against its intake. … “

December 8, 2009 · Filed Under Poseidon's Carlsbad Plant

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Commentary/rebuttal: Desalination: separating fact from fiction

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on December 2, 2009 at 5:11 pm

From the Daily Pilot, this commentary by Scott Maloni, vice president of Poseidon Resources in response to this commentary by Garry Brown of the OC Coastkeeper:

“In the short period that I have come to know OC Coastkeeper Executive Director Garry Brown, I have found him to be a passionate and pragmatic advocate for the coastal environment. While we don’t agree on seawater desalination and our Huntington Beach project, his arguments mostly have been factual, and he has handled himself professionally and respectfully. Unfortunately, in his recent opinion piece, “Desalination plant will cost more than GWRS” (Sounding Off, Nov. 29), Brown has resorted to disseminating misinformation about Poseidon and the project.

Brown’s comparison between the cost of seawater desalination and the Ground Water Replenishment System (GWRS) is disingenuous. The H.B. desalination plant is being built to offset Orange County’s demand for more expensive and less reliable imported water, not to replace or compete with GWRS. There is no single, “silver bullet” water supply solution, which is why local water managers who are advocates of GWRS are also supporting seawater desalination. In addition, the cost of producing water at the H.B. plant is $1,100 an acre foot, not the “$2,000 to $3,000” he asserts. … “

December 2, 2009 · Filed Under Poseidon's Huntington Beach

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With bond sales imminent, Poseidon moves on desal project

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on December 1, 2009 at 5:52 am

From the San Diego Business Journal:

“After 11 years of intense planning, California Coastal Commission hearings and related regulatory hurdles, Poseidon Resources is ready to break ground on the $360 million Carlsbad Desalination Project.

Work to clear the coastal site for construction has begun, and in January, sales of $530 million worth of investment grade, tax-exempt bonds are planned to fund the project. State approvals for the bond sale are expected in coming weeks.

And Peter MacLaggan, senior vice president of Poseidon Resources, said foundations for the plant will most likely be poured in March of next year.

Up until that time, the site at the Encina Power Station will be cleared of oil and diesel storage tanks, underground piping, and a wastewater treatment plant. Asbestos materials will be removed, electrical and mechanical equipment relocated and soil remediation done as needed. Measures to prevent stormwater pollution will also be installed.

“We expect there will be a market for the bonds,” said MacLaggan, noting that the sales of $530 million in bonds will cover the $360 million project and its transaction costs. … “

December 1, 2009 · Filed Under Poseidon's Carlsbad Plant

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Commentary: Desalination plant will cost more than GWRS

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on November 29, 2009 at 7:16 am

From the Daily Pilot, this commentary by Garry Brown, executive director of Orange County Coastkeeper:

“As we try to understand the water crisis gripping California, we must understand that not all of the proposed solutions to our water crisis are created equal. Some solutions such as conservation are inexpensive, most applications are somewhat costly, and then there is one that is outrageously expensive: ocean desalination.

Many people believe that ocean desalination is the ultimate solution to our water problems. I support desalination on a case-by-case basis, in certain locations, and with the right technology. In reality, desalination is not yet ready for California. Basically, with the 50-year-old technology that Poseidon is proposing, we are in effect trading electricity for water. It is the most expensive solution to our water crisis compared to any of the other solutions discussed.

Let’s compare a new state-of-the-art water recycling solution called the Ground Water Replenishment System (GWRS) operating in Orange County to the Poseidon desalination project proposed in Carlsbad or Huntington Beach. … “

November 29, 2009 · Filed Under Poseidon's Huntington Beach

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Should taxpayers subsidize desalination? Poseidon Resources may help the drought, but at what cost?

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on November 25, 2009 at 6:09 am

From the San Francisco Guardian:

“Should the state of California hand over a multimillion dollar tax break to a company that is poised to build the largest desalination facility on the continent, just north of San Diego? That question will be decided early next year when Poseidon Resources, a water-infrastructure developer, formally submits its request for more than $500 million in tax-exempt bonds to the California Debt Limit Allocation Committee (CDLAC).

The decision will demonstrate whether California is willing to roll out the red carpet for desalination, an energy-intensive technology that has many questioning whether it’s a wise path to take. Proposals for desalination projects are cropping up across the state, including one for a smaller facility in Marin County, and water bonds recently approved by the Legislature as part of the state’s historic water package include $1 billion earmarked for water recycling and desalination.

With the state well into a three-year drought that has left some agricultural operations high and dry, calls for new reliable water sources such as desalination plants are only growing louder. … “

November 25, 2009 · Filed Under Poseidon's Carlsbad Plant

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Another carbon nanotube desalination system launched

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on November 20, 2009 at 7:47 am

From Desalination & Water ReUse:

“A carbon-nanotube technology for water desalination and other liquid-based-separations has been licensed by the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) in the USA exclusively to Porifera Inc of Hayward, California, a company set up in 2008 to market the technology.

The technology first took off when it was funded by LLNL’s Directed Research & Development Program and supported by the Science & Technology Principal Directorate. Bakajin and Noy’s research originally focused on using carbon nanotubes as a less expensive solution to desalination.

Carbon nanotubes are special molecules made of carbon atoms in a unique arrangement which allow liquids and gases to rapidly flow through, while the tiny pore size can block larger molecules, offering a cheaper way to remove salt from water. Porifera is developing membranes with vastly superior permeability, durability and selectivity for water purification and other applications in the clean-tech sector such as CO2 sequestration. … “

Read more from Desalination & Water Reuse by clicking here.

November 20, 2009 · Filed Under Desalination

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Cheaper desalination – Saltworks breakthrough

Posted by: Aqua Blog Maven on November 16, 2009 at 4:33 pm

From CleanTechnica, this article written by Paul O’Callaghan, CEO of Cleantech consultancy firm, O2 Environmental Inc. and author of Water Technology Markets:

“Canadian firm, Saltworks Technologies, just came out of stealth in relation to their desalination technology, which they claim reduce the electrical energy required for desalination by over 70%. They report they can produce 1m3 of water with 1kW hour of electrical energy, compared to the 3.7kWhr per m3, which is what is currently achievable using reverse osmosis with the use of energy recovery devices.

So how to they do it? Well its novel. It appears to be a new approach. And novel and new are two things scarce as hens teeth in relation to desalination technologies.

They use solar heat (or waste heat) to evaporate water and concentrate salt water. They are converting solar energy into osmotic energy by doing this. They then use this osmotic energy to desalinate water. … “

Read more from Clean Technica by clicking here.

November 16, 2009 · Filed Under Desalination

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