Aerial view of the Carlsbad desalination plant's proposed site.	Visual simulation of the site post-construction.

• Understanding the unique obstacles ahead of you before proceeding with a seawater desalination project.
• Determining the project’s regulatory and technical feasibility.
• Comparing the project’s long-term costs to benefits and the investment required to reach the approval stage.
• Developing a full range of reasonable alternatives. For example, look at ocean intake alternatives that do not require open intakes.
• Reviewing other desalination project documentation. “Quite a bit has been published on desalination recently,” said Monaco. “Review the applicable materials to thoroughly understand the issues.”
• Considering the long-term plans of the power utility if considering co-location with an existing or proposed power plant. Coastal power plants have the ocean intake infrastructure in place, saving money during construction and time in permitting this aspect of the project, yet involve complex and controversial issues related to marine biological effects.
• Planning the distribution system in order to supply the desalinated water to customers.

Analyzing Carlsbad’s Desalination Plant Environmental Impacts
To reduce dependence on imported water supplies, the City of Carlsbad approved a proposal from Poseidon Resources Corporation to construct a seawater desalination plant. “This proposed plant represents the first large-scale west coast seawater desalination plant to advance through local land use and Regional Water Quality Control Board approvals,” said Monaco, who authored the EIR.

The plant, to be built on approximately four acres adjacent to the existing Encina Power Station, will produce approximately 56,000 acre-feet per year (50 million gallons per day) of new potable water – enough to meet the needs of nearly 225,000 people.

Achieving Success with Alternative Water Supply
Desalination is becoming increasingly important as an alternative water supply due to more efficient and cost effective advances in reverse osmosis technology. Even with a myriad of environmental considerations, Monaco said the Carlsbad project was successful for the following reasons:

• The City of Carlsbad showed great leadership in conceiving the project, devoting staff resources and working hand-in-hand with Poseidon. Poseidon will privately operate the plant, selling water primarily to the city as well as other water purveyors.
• Poseidon invested significantly in researching the key issues. As a result of the detailed analyses, it produced high quality technical data to support the project.
• While the environmental community expressed concerns, there was general project support among local communities. “The value of desalinating this plentiful water supply was clearly addressed and communicated by the city and Poseidon,” explained Monaco.

Poseidon is in the process of obtaining California Coastal Commission approvals in order to execute its design and construction specifications.