By Carolina London, San Diego Chapter
On July 28, 2016 SAVE International members, including participants from the Bohdi Group, Kleinfender, Inc., Value Management Institute, Northrup Grumman Information Systems, Enecon, Zondork General Engineering and Northern Arizona University, attended a guided tour of the Claude “Bud” Lewis Carlsbad Desalination Plant located approximately 34 miles north of San Diego, CA. The tour brought a large and diverse group of engineers and professionals together to view the 50 million gallon per day desalination plant.
Our tour guide for the day, Ashley Jenkins, informed us that the plant had currently been exceeding its estimated output with approximately 64 million gallons of water per day. That’s about 14 million gallons more per day than anticipated. The San Diego County Water Authority purchases this desalinated water from Poseidon Water in an effort to increase water supply reliability in the region.
Currently, the Carlsbad Desalination Plant is the largest in the Western Hemisphere. However, with increased water usage and drought in Southern California, it may not be alone for long. Ms. Jenkins also mentioned another desalination plant currently under construction in Huntington Beach, CA. This plant is also being built by Poseidon Water.
The desalination process includes two pretreatment stages where algae, organic materials and other microscopic particles are removed. After pretreatment, the water moves into the reverse osmosis stage which is considered the heart of the desalination process at the Carlsbad Plant. The last stage is post treatment where minerals are added back into the water and chlorine is used for disinfection. To learn more about the desalination process please visit www.carlsbaddesal.com.
The tour was both informative and an excellent opportunity for SAVE members and other participants to network and to exchange ideas for future projects and collaboration. Participant turnout was a success and those who attended had the chance to view the first of what may be many desalination plants in California.
After the tour, SAVE members and tour participants joined in for lunch at Sammy’s Woodfired Pizza & Grill. During lunch, conversation was flowing and new ideas were exchanged between professionals. Overall, the tour was a great success and those who attended left with new information, professional connections and ideas for the future.
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