Urgent – Please sign OCDC’s Smart Water Solutions Petition

Support Smart Water Solutions – Not Salt Water Solutions

The California Coastal Commission, California
State Lands Commission, and the Santa Ana Regional Water Quality Board are
going to hear the proposal for the construction of an ocean desalination
facility in Huntington Beach, CA. Poseidon Resources, a private water
speculator, is seeking permission to co-locate a 50-million-gallon-per-day
ocean desalination facility with the existing power generating station in
Huntington Beach. This project is expensive, contradicts statewide
energy/climate/marine protection goals, may prolong the use of an antiquated
open seawater intake system that kills marine life, and undermines other smart
water solutions such as increased water conservation and reuse.

Tell decision-makers to oppose Poseidon’s ocean

desalination proposal in Huntington Beach!

Sign the petition   so that your
comments will go on public record. Click HERE to go to the OCDC’s Web Site

This project needs to be stopped in Huntington Beach. If this project is approved,
it could set the precedent for the approval of other expensive and environmentally
destructive desalination facilities in California.

OCDC is a growing coalition of: Food & Water Watch, Surfrider
Foundation, Residents for Responsible Desalination (R4RD), Orange County
Coastkeeper, Desal Response Group, and Orange County League of Conservation
Voters.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Published: March 15, 2012 Updated: March 16, 2012 2:43 p.m. The Register

Eco groups appeal Poseidon desalination plant OK

Santa Ana Regional Water Quality Control Board has 120 days to approve or deny appeal.

“Like” Huntington Beach Wave on Facebook to see more news, photos and conversation.

By JAIMEE LYNN FLETCHER / THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

Four local environmental groups have filed an appeal of the Santa Ana Regional Water Quality Control Board approval of a permit for the Poseidon Desalination plant in Huntington Beach.

The Surfrider Foundation, Residents for Responsible Desalination, Orange County Coastkeeper and Coast Environmental Rights Foundation are behind the appeal, filed Wednesday, saying the board failed to apply the appropriate law that would “protect marine life from the destructive impacts that would result from the operation of the (facility).”

For details click here

 

Many concerned residents preparing to expose impacts of brine on sealife at Loma Linda meeting.

See http://www.swrcb.ca.gov/rwqcb8/board_info/agendas/2011/12_09/12-09-11_agenda.pdf  agenda item #10

Read more at Nick Gerda’s Voice of OC Post – Click Here

 

 

Message from R4RD President

The Coastal Commission will meet in Huntington Beach at City Hall on October 5^th,  9 a.m..
We had thought that this would be our turn at bat but with things going
south in San Diego, R4RD, Coastkeeper and the Surfrider, expect at this point
we will take advantage of Public Comment time to simply remind the Commission
that we are here, this is OUR community, and that we remain vigilant  to an assault from a company that would
further negatively impact our ocean, our coastline and our community at large.

We would still like for as many of you as possible to show up and be accounted for.

R4RD supports neighbors in Costa Mesa and S.E. Huntington Beach that are fighting

to stop the further development of the Banning Ranch property with the building of 1400 new homes, and a 75 room hotel
on the Banning property.  So come and join us.  We will keep you updated on our
website, Facebook page, and my e-mail.
It is essential that we have YOUR e-mail address for these updates.

R4RD needs more volunteers to help cover meetings of water agencies in our area.  We also need help in contacting and
recruiting membership.  Nothing beats a phone call or a card from someone within your group to stay in contact.  Whatever you can spare, we will take.

Join us right now.  Together we cannot fail.  This is YOUR water folks.  Take back the tap!

Merle
Moshiri, President

Residents
for Responsible Desalination

Surfrider Legal Action, AES- Poseidon HB Site Future?

Surfrider takes appeal to 4th Appellate Court in San Diego -

Click here for details

 Joe Geever summarizes the implications of AES’s Sale of HB Units 3 and 4

Click here for details – 3 page overview

Listen to Redondo Beach Councilman Bill Brand argue that AES is just not needed any longer

 

Read Redondo Beach 86 page Action Plan against AES

 

 

 Why is Poseidon-HB Info Overwhelmed?

It is reasonably easy to tell if an organization is overwhelmed by information: slow, incomplete, error-prone, misleading messages are problematic clues. It should be instructive to decision makers and taxpayers to carefully study the messages that Poseidon’s Scott Maloni has provided the CCC over the last 6 years, and CCC’s  patient requests for corrected documentation.

Please read:

CCC_PoseidonHBDesal_5.10.11

 

Milt Dardis has translated these 10 pages of CCC detail into a short list, and calls into question certain past and present HB City Council members ability to frame good sustainable questions about Poseidon’s intentions:

Milt notes that “The California Coastal Commission letter of 10 May 2011 is what the propagandist for the HB Political Machine is questioning. So let us take a gander at the facts that the California Coastal Commission has presented in the form of Questions to Poseidon Resources and the City of HB.

1.  As of May 2011 the 2006 Poseidon Resources application to build a desal plant remains incomplete.

2. Poseidon Resources has yet to apply for federal permits and its now 2011.

3. Poseidon Resources has not provided adequate responses for information since 2009

4. Poseidon Resources  2006 responses  are now  at odds  with more current and relevant data

5. Poseidon  Resources has yet to identify local discretionary permits and approvals needed to construct and operate the project

6. Poseidon Resources has yet to provide legal interest in properties within the coastal zone the would be used by the project

7. Poseidon Resources  has yet to provide water purchase agreements in place for water Poseidon Resources will generate

8.  The HB project had a projected construction and operational costs of $300 Million.  Yet, an identical facility in Carlsbad is now estimated to cost $700 Million.  Where did the $400 Million come from and what is the basis of these costs as the “total fools” will want to know.

There are other issues of effects on Marine Life and Water Quality that the “total fools” should be asking.  Intake velocities, marine life studies, expected flows and  discharge of salinity levels, wetlands, seismic dangers, noise factors, hazardous materials along the pipeline route and project costs.

—–/ Thanks, Milt -

Jerry Brown’s New Team & Water-Energy Integrated Policy?

Friday, March 4th was a busy day for R4 -

Starting at the Water Advisory Council of Orange County (WACO) at 7:30am, then moving to either the UCI event or the Green Vision event, we heard details of Gov. Brown’s team and budget-policy issues confounding lobbyists on almost all sides of the Water and Energy Integrated Management battlefield.

The semantics of whether California has enough water and energy, OR enough smart ways to manage water and energy conflicting values with leadership will continue: it is our intent to frame the semantics so that the larger picture is clear and a sustainable path can be negotiated.

It is especially encouraging to see new initatives to integrate both water planning and energy planning within Brown’s new team: a Sustainable Growth Council.

Desalination decisions, of course, bridge Water and Energy topics in terms of Economics, Ecology, and Equity.

Dave Rosenfield’s post yesterday about  Desal: Boondoggle or Panacea provides a useful summary of issues. Click here to see more.

======================/

Please click here to read more.

Read the SEIR at the City Website - Click here

Sister Desal Organizations up and down the coast

http://desalalternatives.org/

http://www.desalresponsegroup.org/desal_socal/redondobeach.html

http://www.desalresponsegroup.org/desal_norcal/cambria.html

http://desalalternatives.org/

http://www.desalresponsegroup.org/ 

Come join us for the Summer Social held by R4RD Sunday,

August 28th from 2:00-4:00 pm being held

 at Eader Park, 9291 Banning St., Huntington Beach.

r.s.v.p. Suzie Smith – 714 536 1084

Speakers:

       Merle Moshiri, President R4RD

       Joe Geever, Regional Manager, Surfrider Foundation
Conner Everts, Southern California Watershed Alliance

Update on the HB Poseidon Project
Celebrate no Poseidon Project in HB!
Refreshments
Native plant raffle
Silent auction
Connect with friends
No charge to attend
r.s.v.p. patgoodman@yahoo.com or Suzie Smith at 714 536 1084

Why are HB Water Policies rated “Poor”?

The predictions of a looming “water supply crisis” only seem dire until we embrace the notion that the coordinated and cooperative efforts by many public agencies who have some authority over managing water, as well as our own efforts at home, can result in reform that integrates solutions to multiple problems.

Crisis drives reform – and World Water Day is an invaluable opportunity to illustrate what the reform looks like in our communities and how we end up with a sustainable economy, environment and better quality of life.

Click here for the full article

—–/

Debbie Cook’s assessment of water options for 2020

<SNIP> From The Greener Blue.com Blog

In Huntington Beach water costs $2.27 for a thousand gallons whether we use a lot or a little. There is no incentive to save water when it is so cheap. At the other extreme is Catalina Island. They have a small desalination facility that is used during droughts. They have a three tiered water structure whereby they pay $10 for a thousand gallons at the low end and over $40 for a thousand gallons at the high end.

There are any number of alternatives to ocean desalination including recycled water such as is being done in Orange County, capturing rainwater, conservation, gray water systems, and efficiency. They represent the low-hanging fruit that achieves multiple benefits not the least of which is to improve our regions resilience to energy and water price spikes.

While conservation makes the most sense, it is typically the lowest funding priority. The reason is simple, there is no incentive for a water agency to push conservation. MWD recently red-lined their conservation budget and approved $900 million to subsidize ocean desalinated water over the next 25 years.

If you are in the water business, you generate revenue by selling water. Any money allocated for conservation has to come from existing revenue. In addition, water conservation incurs costs to the agency to hire staff and implement programs. Agencies have fixed costs that have to be paid whether we use a lot of water or a little water. You may have noticed your water rates went up last year. It was because the region conserved water.

The solution to the region’s water challenge is to reduce water consumption 20% by 2020. It is absolutely achievable and can be done by adopting an appropriate rate structure that (1) provides financial stability to the agency to cover their fixed costs, (2) provides a basic needs allocation at a rate affordable to all, (3) assures funding for conservation initiatives, and (4) discourages waste. It is not a new idea but most cities find it easier to adopt expensive technical fixes rather than suggest that perhaps our behavior is inappropriate for the region in which we live.

For the complete article, please click here

R4RD’s Study of Carlsbad Desal Costs

 Click here for full report

 Click here for an Economist’s Comments

Executive Summary

 

There is much interest, but little clarity on the cost of desalinated seawater in California and how it compares to other urban water management options.

 To address this issue, this investigation collected general information along with costs and production records and cost projections for many prominent seawater desalination facilities and proposed projects in North America and California.

  Along with many others, this included Tampa Bay, Carlsbad, Santa Barbara, and Marin. These four projects are described and evaluated as case studies in this paper. 

 Seawater desalination for $800 to $1,000 per acre-foot? Or more like $2,000 to $3,000 per acre-foot?

Some advocates of seawater desalination suggest marginal costs of $800 to $1,000 per acre-foot are now possible in California. However, despite a thorough investigation, this study found no evidence of seawater desalination facilities in North America producing water in that cost range. This study also found no credible evidence that new seawater desalination projects in California, given local conditions, could produce water in that cost range.

 Given the best presently available technology, this investigation found realistic estimates of the marginal costs for seawater desalination in California will range from a minimum of about $2,000 to $3,000 or more per acre-foot of water produced.  This compares to typically much lower marginal costs of well under $1,000 per acre-foot for most urban water conservation measures.

 The Carlsbad project, at 50 MGD design capacity, is the largest presently proposed project in California and the most progressed within the permitting process. It is proposed by a private corporation, Poseidon Resources, and is subject to less cost transparency than public projects.

Since Poseidon Resources is seeking publicly subsidized funding and financing, and indicates a willingness to match the cost of existing water supply options, much interest is presently focused on the realistic cost of water produced by the proposed Carlsbad facility. This analysis evaluates the realistic cost of desalinated water for the proposed Carlsbad and other desalination facilities from which adequate cost records and projections could be obtained.

 What Will Large-Scale Seawater Desalination Realistically Cost in California?

 With limited exceptions, water agencies and private interests involved in seawater desalination appear reluctant to release verifiable marginal costs analysis for their seawater desalination projects. This has troubled many observers since marginal costs analyses form the basis of integrated water resources planning and rational decision making for water management plans and infrastructure investments.

 

 

 

 

 

Click here forR4RD Carlsbad Cost Study Updates

Click here to participate in a Poll

Click here to add comments

I doubt that “cheap desal” will ever be an operative term; there are reasons why such things are empty phrases, like “the hydrogen economy” and “secondary treatment is not a perfect process”.

The reason water is the “universal solvent” is the extreme electric potential of its covalent bonding, asymmetrical due to the famous 108 degree angle of the H-O-H molecule.  The relatively small water molecules surround and, literally, tear apart many organic and inorganic compounds that have weaker bonds.

Water is much more stable than other compounds due to the enormous energy given off in its formation:

2H2+O2=>2H2O+lots of heat energy  (that’s why creating hydrogen is so expensive).

Ex nihilo nihil fit:  There is nothing “for nothing” in nature!

Con men play on the gullible in propounding the glories of Hydrogen, whining that there aren’t enough fuel stations, for example, for this “amazing fuel”.  But to get the powerful fuel, you have to run that equation in reverse; you need to put about 60 kWh of energy into making each 35 kWh of H2, not counting compression and storage, leakage and inefficiency.

Similarly, the dream of “undoing the universal solvent”, or making fresh water out of dirty water, requires undoing a powerful force, that binding power of the asymmetrical water molecule, which defines water chemistry.  A microwave, for example, heats substances by intense vibration of the water molecule based on varying magnetic fields of that asymmetrical molecule.

About the only way to ensure pure water is the hydrologic cycle, where the sun evaporates water via heat, and the purified water vapor recondenses into rain.

The idea of using filters or chemicals to purify water is sort of like the alchemists “theory” of finding the philosophers’ stone that changes lead into gold.  Actually, it can be done, by adding 3 protons in a nuke reactor; but atom by atom and it’s incredibly dangerous — and expensive.

FILTERS are the latest scam.  Any filter is EXPENSIVE, and subject to lifespan issues.  Dirty water is pushed through the tiny pores of the filter material, which strips most of the contaminants from the H2O bond, and allows the H2O molecules to slip through the material.

But not all impurities are larger than the H2O molecule; some contaminants will slip by the filter.

See the complete argument: Click here

 Concerned about the $11 billion water bond? Sheila Kuehl provides insight into recent water legislation.

Water, Water, Everywhere, But Now We Stop and Think
by Sheila Kuehl

This is the first in a series of four essays describing the five separate pieces of water legislation recently passed by the California legislature and signed, in many public events, by the Governor.  In total, the legislation amended the oversight structure of the Sacramento/San Joaquin Delta, extended water conservation mandates, set up some groundwater measurement procedures, authorized the use of funds from a past water bond and set up a new bond for voter approval next year.

In this essay, I provide an overview of some of the problems created by the legislation, and describe the bill affecting the monitoring of groundwater.  In the next essay, I will describe the bill related to the Delta governance structure.  In the third, I cover water rights and expenditures authorized from an existing bond.  In the fourth essay, I will present and analyze the proposed 11.14 billion dollar bond to be placed on the November 2, 2010 ballot.

For more information click here

 

Governor Calls Special Session on Water
Progress Cited in Ongoing Negotiations on Water Package

Association of California Water Agencies OUTREACH

Oct 12, 2009

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger called a special session late yesterday to continue work on a far-reaching legislative package to address the Delta, water conservation and other issues.

Hours before the midnight Sunday deadline to sign or veto bills approved by the Legislature, the governor said enough progress had been made on water over the previous days to warrant a special session. He also cited that progress in moving away from an earlier pledge to veto hundreds of bills if lawmakers failed to agree on a comprehensive water package.

For more details check here: