Carlsbad Desal Plant One-Year Landmark

The Claude “Bud” Lewis Carlsbad Desalination Plant provides the region with a new source of water that is drought-proof and something to celebrate.  In December 2015 one of the most complex, unique and technologically advanced seawater desalination plants in the Western Hemisphere opened right here on the sunny shores of San Diego, California.  This month the 50 million gallons per day Carlsbad plant and largest ocean desalination plant in the Americas will be celebrating its one-year anniversary. 

The plant arose out of an overwhelming concern for the regions lack of local water supplies.  After suffering a severe drought lasting from 1987 to 1992 a proposed fifty percent cut to water deliveries for Metropolitan Water District’s member agencies was seriously being discussed by their board members.  Metropolitan Water District supplied about 95 percent of the water used in the county at the time and had been a reliable source of water in the county.  It was crucially apparent that we needed to diversify our supplies and ocean desalination soon became part of that plan.  In 2000 Poseidon Water began a feasibility study for the building of a desalination plant and in 2001 the San Diego County Water Authority voted to spend $50,000 to begin searching for good locations for the plant.

Since its opening the plant has been honored with numerous prestigious awards including: the Global Water Award as the International Plant of the Year for 2016 by Global Water Intelligence, the Grand Golden Watchdog Award for the project and unique collaboration between Poseidon Water and the San Diego County Water Authority, the 2016 Water Energy Nexus Champion by San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E), 2016 Project of the Year and National Award of Excellence by the Design-Build Institute of America to name a few.