On Tuesday, Nov. 17, Poseidon Water announced its unprecedented commitment to carbon neutrality by offsetting 100% of the direct and indirect emissions from the construction and operation of its proposed Huntington Beach Seawater Desalination Plant, which is currently under review by the California Coastal Commission. Poseidon’s Energy Minimization and Greenhouse Gas Reduction Plan (“GHG Plan”) was submitted to the Commission as part of its permit application on November 9th. 

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

Huntington Beach, CA – Today, Poseidon Water announced its unprecedented commitment to carbon neutrality by offsetting 100% of the direct and indirect emissions from the construction and operation of its proposed Huntington Beach Seawater Desalination Plant, which is currently under review by the California Coastal Commission. Poseidon’s Energy Minimization and Greenhouse Gas Reduction Plan (“GHG Plan”) was submitted to the Commission as part of its permit application on November 9th. 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Tatiana Halsted  707-631-8906 download a pdf.
Panel finds that subsurface intake at the proposed site would have “Severe” Environmental Impacts 
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Huntington Beach, CA – After releasing a public review draft in August, the Independent Scientific Technical Advisory Panel (ISTAP) jointly convened by the California Coastal Commission staff and Poseidon Water has published its final report assessing the feasibility of alternative subsurface seawater intake technologies for Poseidon Water’s proposed Huntington Beach Desalination Project. The report judges that subsurface intake technologies at the site would lead to “severe” adverse environmental and social impacts during construction as well as long-term environmental impacts from operations. Compared to the screened-ocean intake proposed by the company, the ISTAP also concluded that subsurface intakes would cost an additional $1.1 - $1.5 billion to construct, and be economically infeasible due to the financing risks that are a barrier to implementation. ​

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Adam Keigwin 916-444-1380 download a pdf.
82 percent of Californians want state to approve desalination projects

STANFORD, CALIF - Today, the Hoover Institute released a statewide poll that shows Californians overwhelmingly support the building of desalination facilities on California’s coast. 
Across all demographic groups – including age, race, gender, geographic location, education level, and political party affiliation – respondents support desalination. In fact, 82 percent of those polled support building desalination facilities, with 57 percent strongly supporting. ​

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Tatiana Halsted 707-631-8906 download a pdf.
Project to Generate 3,000 Jobs and Infuse $500 Million into Regional Economy 

​Huntington Beach, CA – With California in the midst of a catastrophic drought including record-high temperatures, depleted groundwater basins, and historically low snowpack levels, Poseidon Water is working on the Huntington Beach Desalination Project that, when complete, will provide Orange County with 50 million gallons of fresh drinking water per day from the Pacific Ocean. 
Last night, Scott Maloni, Vice President of Poseidon, gave an update on the project to the City of Huntington Beach stating that the desalination facility will also provide a significant financial benefit for the local and regional economy, specifically a cumulative financial benefit within the City of approximately $200 million. ​

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.

Ocean desalination is an urgent necessity for Orange County. As California faces mandatory water restrictions for the first time in history, we need to be pursuing all of our options. I often hear versions of the question, “How will Orange County protect itself from this systemic water crisis?” As a scientist, doctor and father, desal is a commonsense answer. It’s really a no-brainer. We’re blessed with an abundant water source (the Pacific Ocean) at our doorstep, so let’s tap it. But, as an elected official representing the public, I know that it’s imperative to also contemplate costs and taxpayer risk.