Edison, Developer to Build Desalination Plant on Catalina

Southern California Edison and a condominium developer Tuesday announced plans to build a system to convert seawater to drinking water on Santa Catalina Island. It would be one of the first desalination plants on the West Coast.

Hamilton Cove Associates, the developer, will build the facility in exchange for about 24 million gallons a year from the plant. The agreement will clear the way for a condominium complex Hamilton Cove is building on the water-poor island.

Edison will own and run the plant and will use its half of the water produced as a reserve against drought. Some water will also be made available for other construction projects, according to Keith Lefever, Edison’s Catalina district manager.

Though not widely known, the United States is second only to the Middle East in the number of operating desalination plants, according to Neil D. Berlant, managing partner of Water Research Associates.

“There is going to be an increasing amount of desal activity in Southern California,” Berlant predicted. Dramatically rising prices for drinking water have only in recent years begun to make seawater desalination economical in certain circumstances.

The project awaits approval from the California Public Utilities Commission. Edison has already applied for state and local permits to run a desalination plant.