California, especially the Central Valley and Southern California, is experiencing the worst drought since the 1970s, and arguably the worst drought in its recorded history (about 65 years). Yet to most Californians, it is nothing more than a small inconvenience because water still flows from our taps and shower heads, and clean, safe drinking water – in the form of bottled water – is always available.

HUNTINGTON BEACH, CA, - On Thursday, May 14, the Orange County Water District (OCWD) Board of Directors voted to approve a Water Reliability Agreement term sheet with Poseidon Water that will allow OCWD to secure the single largest source of new, local water supply available to Orange County -- 56,000 acre-feet of water annually from the proposed seawater desalination project in Huntington Beach (see "OCWD enters negotiations to secure single largest source of new water"). 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Tatiana Halsted 707-631-8906 download a pdf. 

Huntington Beach, CA – Late yesterday evening, the Orange County Water District (OCWD) Board of Directors voted to approve a Water Reliability Agreement term sheet with Poseidon Water that will allow OCWD to secure the single largest source of new, local water supply available to Orange County – 56,000 acre-feet of water annually from the proposed seawater desalination project in Huntington Beach. ​

Forty years ago this spring, Water Factory 21, an advanced wastewater treatment plant, began operation, as did a companion seawater desalter plant. They were jointly funded by the Orange County Water District and the U.S. Department of Interior. While WF21 would become an internationally acclaimed water treatment facility, the desalter plant was shuttered after less than a year – not because desalination lacked promise, but because the 1975 recession forced the federal government to cut spending. Forty years later, OCWD is considering a partnership with Poseidon Resources, a private developer, in its planned Ocean Desalination Plant in Huntington Beach. 

Read the full article online at ocregister.com.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact Tatiana Halsted (707) 631-8906
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Huntington Beach, CA —Today, the State Water Resources Control Board approved the long-awaited seawater desalination amendment to the state’s Ocean Plan. The new policy confirms that seawater desalination facilities can be sited, built, and operated without significant, unmitigable impacts to coastal and marine resources, and reinforces the role seawater desalination will play in addressing current and future water demand across California.