A recent report by the Bureau of National Affairs on the status of desalination in the U.S. since 2000 contained a wealth of interesting observations and projections:
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Half again as many municipal desalination plants were built between 2000 and 2010 as were built in the preceding three decades.
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During that decade, 117 municipal desalination plants were constructed, bringing the total to 324 plants built since 1971. Those figures include municipal plants with the capacity to produce 25,000 gallons per day or more of potable water.
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Desalination grew significantly due to improved technology, a decline in cost and dwindling supplies of water in the face of heightened demand. Many experts say desalination will continue to grow, although some are unsure if the industry will be able to overcome the hurdles posed by regulatory requirements.
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Desalination technology has been slow to catch on in the U.S., in part, because of regulatory restrictions, the high cost of energy needed to power the treatment plants and concerns about proper methods to dispose of the resulting salty waste.
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Despite these hurdles, the United States ranks fourth among markets for desalinated water behind Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Spain.
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More than 40 percent of commercial and residential water supplies comes from desalination and wastewater reuse: roughly 30 percent from wastewater reuse and 13 percent from desalination.
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There were nearly 2,000 desalination plants larger than 300,000 gallons per day operating in the U.S. as of 2005 when industrial plants are figured in.
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As of 2010, Florida had the most municipal desalination plants with 148, followed by California at 45, Texas with 30 and North Carolina having 12.
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Many desalination facilities spend between one-third to one-half of operating cost on the electricity to run the technology.
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The federal government and industry have worked to address desalination problems, finding ways to decrease costs, become energy efficient, harness renewable energy and reduce concentrate being released. Approximately $56 million in federal funding was provided between 1998 and 2012 to augment desalination research.
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Regulatory barriers could limit the growth of the industry. For instance, California requires 27 permits to site a desalination plant and the time line could take years. The Carlsbad desalination plant’s location was first identified in 1991. To open the plant, Poseidon Resources’ proposal was vetted through a company study, two environmental impact reports, 12 discretionary local permits, seven state agency discretionary permits, 21 public hearings with a cumulative 85 hours of testimony, dozens of technical studies and 14 legal challenges and will open by 2016.
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A 2011 Bloomberg New Energy Finance study predicted the United States will likely have 8 percent of the world’s desalination capacity by 2019. That would make the United States the region with the second largest desalination capacity, with the Middle East and North Africa’s 79 percent of global capacity far out pacing the rest of the world.
“U.S. Desalination Industry Grows Since 2000; Seen as Essential to Meeting Supply Needs,” by Rachel Leven, appeared in the August 21, 2013 edition of Daily Environment Report.