The San Diego County Water Authority is moving ahead with tests necessary for a desalination plant at Camp Pendleton that could eventually produce up to 150 million gallons a day.
If built, it would be the third desalination project in San Diego County after the $1 billion Carlsbad plant that is set to open later this year and a smaller groundwater plant in Chula Vista.
The authority’s board on Thursday authorized $4 million to build and test different systems for taking in seawater for desalination. The testing will take two years to complete.
A major desalination project at Camp Pendelton is viewed by the authority as a long-term water supply option for the region that could come online after 2030. Two possible sites have been identified near Interstate 5 and the mouth of the Santa Margarita River.
“Given the long lead time for developing seawater desalination projects in California, incremental development activities such as these intake studies will maintain a potential Camp Pendleton project as a viable alternative,” said Mark Weston, chair of the authority’s board of directors.
“This research will help us understand the most environmentally friendly and economically feasible alternatives for water intakes as we consider all the other complex factors involved with securing a reliable long-term water supply for our homes and economy,” he added.
A memorandum of understanding with Camp Pendleton does not commit either party to advance the project beyond the testing activities, which will be performed by Michael Baker International, an engineering and consulting firm with extensive experience at other seawater desalination projects under development in California.
