The Need for Water Goes On and On

In May 2008, Water World online quoted a study by the McIlvaine Company that projected a 45% to 50% increase worldwide in sales of large-scale reverse osmosis systems over the next four years, with world equipment and membrane sales expected to reach $5.6 billion in 2012, compared to $3.8 billion in 2008.

In June 2008 WaterWebster quoted Global Water Intelligence and the International Desalination Association that there were 13,869 contracted desalination plants worldwide, with the top 10 countries being Saudi Arabia, the UAE, the U.S., Spain, Kuwait, Algeria, China, Qatar, Japan and Australia.

Let’s take a look at some examples of desalination projects around the world:

Australia

At of the end of 2008 a desalination project was on track to deliver up to 15% of the water supply to Sydney by late 2009/early 2010. The project involves building an 18-km pipeline from the desalination plant to the water supply system’s main facility.

The Adelaide Desalination Project, begun in 2007, is expected to deliver its first water in December 2010, and up to 50 billion liters of water each year after that, about a quarter of Adelaide’s water supply. The plant will be expandable up to 100 billion liters a year.

The South East Queensland Desalination Project produced its first water in November 2008, and when fully operational should produce 125 Ml/day.

China

Chinawater.net recently quoted a prediction by the National Special Plan of Seawater Utilization that the desalination capacity in China for 2010 will reach to 0.8 to 1 million cubic meters per day, with eventual capacity of 250-300 million cubic meters/day, or about 100 billion cubic meters per year.

Middle East

In October 2008 Energy Recovery, Inc. (ERI, San Leandro, CA) announced a contract to provide the energy recovery technology for the Hamriyah (Phase 1) Power Station Seawater Reverse Osmosis Desalination Plant in Sharjah, United Arab Emirates. Planned capacity is 91,000 cubic meters per day (24 million gallons per day).

The Middle East has no dearth of projects, which are either underway or planned in Saudi Arabia, Oman, Bahrain, Qatar, Abu Dhabi and Israel.

North Africa

On Dec. 11 ERI announced a contract for a seawater reverse osmosis desalination project in Algeria. The project is designed to produce 120,000 cubic meters per day (31.7 million U.S. gallons per day) and is scheduled to begin operation in early 2010.

United States

The St. Johns River Water Management District in Florida and several county and local governments are working on plans for a desalination facility, with construction targeted for completion in 2017. Also in Florida, the Tampa Bay Seawater Desalination Plant has been operating since 2007, and despite being greatly over budget, provides up to 25 million gallons per day. The plant is operated by American Water and Acciona Agua, through their joint venture subsidiary American Water-Pridesa.

California American Water Co.is in the planning/environmental impact study phase of its Monterey County Coastal Water Project; plans call for output of 14.4 million cubic meters per year. A final environmental impact report could result in mid-2009.

In August 2008 the California Coastal Commission approved the Carlsbad Desalination Project, which is intended to provide San Diego County with up to 69 million cubic meters per year; water could begin to flow by 2011.

In May 2008 the Texas Water Development Board approved up to $800,000 in grants to implement two brackish groundwater desalination demonstration projects; there are several other projects under way in the state.

This is just a small sampling of what’s going on, and desalination projects are only a small part of the water infrastructure work going on around the world. No matter how bad the economy, humanity will never outgrow its need for water.