5 Agencies Submit Plans for Desalination Plants
In a sign of renewed interest in tapping the Pacific Ocean for drinking water, five water agencies submitted plans to build desalination plants.
The Metropolitan Water District of Southern California solicited the proposals as a way to expand the region’s water supplies. Metropolitan sells water to dozens of cities and districts serving 17 million people.
Proposals were submitted by the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, the city of Long Beach, the San Diego County Water Authority, the Municipal Water District of Orange County and the West Basin Municipal Water District.
If built, the proposed plants could provide enough water to supply 260,000 families for a year. The MWD will study the plans and ask for more detailed documents in June, said water resource manager Stephen N. Arakawa.
Only a few, small desalination plants have been built on California’s coast.
Officials say new technology makes desalination more practical, and they have offered to subsidize new plants.
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