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by John Earl, cross-posted from Surf City Voice.
Underlying the long-running battles between proponents and opponents of the proposed Poseidon Resources ocean desalination plant is an ideological war between two roughly defined factions: conservationists and free-marketeers.
The Orange County Water District(OCWD), which manages theSanta Ana River and the Orange County Groundwater Basin (a collection of aquifers containing 60 million acre-feet of water), is ground-zero in that war.
(The OCWD supplies 75 percent of the drinking water for 2.4 million residents of north Orange County)
The conservationists say that conservation is the most cost-effective way to provide a reliable water supply for the public.
They believe that ocean desalination should be a last resort and that with various forms of water conservation, as well as waste-water recycling, there is no need for the Poseidon project.
The Metropolitan Water District of Southern California (MWD), which provides imported water for the entire southern California region, will continue to be reliable, they say.
The conservationists have long advocated for quickly refilling the basin (still badly depleted due to the recent six-year drought) through combined pumping reductions and increased water imports.
No better time to do that than now, they say, after the extraordinary 2016-2017 wet season that left the MWD with more water than it can store.
The free-marketeers see conservation as a curse, not a solution to water shortages…
Read more at Surf City Voice.
Mesa Water uses 100% local reliable groundwater pumped by its wells from the underground aquifer in North/Central OC. The banner used for this story is over a year old when we let customers choose their day to water…that said, there was confusion, so we installed new banners that have been up since a year ago to thank our customers for conserving. Mesa Water supports water use efficiency, conservation, groundwater cleanup, recycled and potable reuse water, and economical and environmentally-sensitive desalination. Desalinated water is a potential new source of safe, reliable, quality water to supplement Orange County’s local supplies and decrease the use of imported surface water that is less reliable and requires energy for its transport to Southern CA from the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta and Colorado River.
So is it an affirmative choice, on the part of Mesa Water, to prefer outdated and overpriced technology such as that being offered by Poseidon — as well as a long-term contract that guarantees Poseidon a profit and displaces all risk onto ratepayers?
If so — is this how you do business in other aspects of your personal and professional dealings?
If desal in OC is a good idea using present technology — which I doubt, especially as compared with likely emerging (and more small-scale) technologies — then get away from these grifters and put a project out to bid. Ah, but you won’t — because it’s not about securing reliable water resources at all: it’s about putting money into venture capitalists pockets by whatever means you think you can get the public to tolerate.
I can’t help but notice, by the way, that you attribute your change in policies entirely to customer conservation as opposed to anything else that’s happened over the past year — such as record rainfall!
I really hate shooting down the same fake facts over and again. Alas, here we go.
Poseidon supplies no new water. None. It replaces an existing water source on a gallon for gallon basis and simply charges is a premium for doing no new work. Anyone telling you this is a new source of water is willfully lying to you.
The safety, reliability, and quality of desal water are all red herrings. Our existing supply is safe. Our existing supply is extremely reliable. Our existing supply has world class quality. This project introduces risks inherent to any manufacturing facility. Assuming world class uptime of 95%, that’s 5% less reliable than our current supply, which has no down time whatsoever. Again, anyone telling you desal offers any improvement in safety, reliability, or quality is wilfully lying to you.
Finally, the most ludicrous statement concerning energy usage, desal is the most energy intensive means to manufacture water ever attempted by man. While both the State Water Project and CO River Aquaduct consume a large quantity of electricity, their usage per acre foot is a fraction of desalination. Those aquaducts also produce a tremendous amount of electricity when releasing water from storage, which has tremendous benefits to our electrical grid. Finally, and most ridiculously, desalination will do nothing to reduce electrical use for either aquaduct. That cheaper water will simply go to other customers, who aren’t as dumb as we are.
All this project does is charge you more for the exact same product you’re already getting. You get no more water. None. You get no improved safety, reliability, or quality. None. You sure as hell do not get any environmental benefit. You get A LOT of environmental consequence.
Same product, higher price. There’s no reason to do this.
Thank you, Ryan, for posting what I was about to say, but using nicer words.
I want to add that the beneficiaries of that cheaper water we enjoy today which will instead go to others when we are stuck with the replacement of more expensive, less reliable water would be the SOUTH COUNTY developments pushed by many who coincidentally back Poseidon.
The developers are not the only ones making bank on the sleight of hand that is desal/Poseidon. Look at the financials of Mesa Water and ask why they are paying so much to those who misinform the public?
And, of course, residents of South County would be pretty much the only ones NOT holding the bag for the ridiculous long-term contract with Poseidon to produce the most expensive water around. If the water is for South County, perhaps South County’s water boards should be the ones to sign the contract with the con artists? THAT will help make property there more affordable — as people flee!
When did greed become an ideology?
*When they created the tax code….they created tax holes and write-offs. That is why CPA’s make the big money on Wall Street. The Poseidon Adventure is just fine and it is certainly a suitable tax write off for investors, business and government. If you have any doubts…..ask about Toll Roads……and do some research…..and soon you will catch on. They is why they said in 1950….”Heck, sell it to the Government….they’ll buy anything!:
Some “ideologies” are built to justify greed. That’s for sure-sy.