California Invests in Desalination Projects to Expand Water Supplies

SACRAMENTO — The Newsom Administration April 19 awarded $5 million in Proposition 1 desalination grants to three projects in Mendocino, Fresno and Los Angeles counties. An additional six projects will receive funding through a partnership with the National Alliance for Water Innovation to advance desalination implementation and research.

A key component of California’s Water Supply Strategy, Adapting to a Hotter, Drier Future, desalination removes salts and minerals from brackish water and seawater to produce water suitable for consumption, irrigation and other needs. The state is working to expand brackish groundwater desalination production by 28,000 acre-feet per year by 2030 to help diversify local water supplies.

The Department of Water Resources or DWR, April 19, announced that three desalination projects in Mendocino, Fresno, and Los Angeles counties will receive $5 million from the Proposition 1- funded Water Desalination Grant Program:

Water Replenishment District of Southern California Construction Project: In Los Angeles County, a project in the City of Torrance will construct a conveyance pipeline to connect an existing well to the existing Goldsworthy Desalter system and install a self-cleaning auto-strainer. The project will reduce the community’s reliance on imported water, provide a sustainable local potable water supply, and increase desalinated water production by 1,120-acre feet per year or approximately enough water for 2,200 households.

DWR is also collaborating with the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Alliance for Water Innovation (NAWI) to support six projects that will pilot breakthrough technologies to reduce energy demand and costs for desalination projects. 

Details: https://tinyurl.com/California-water-supply