The Claude ‘Bud’ Lewis Carlsbad Desalination Plant has officially opened and has already produced more than 5.7 billion litres of locally controlled water for San Diego County, helping to minimise the region’s vulnerability to the California drought. The plant is the result of a 30-year Water Purchase Agreement between the plant’s developer and owner, Poseidon Water, and the San Diego County Water Authority for the production of up to 69 million cubic metres of water per year, enough to meet the needs of approximately 400,000 people. The US$1 billion project includes three main components: the desalination plant adjacent to NRG Energy’s Encina Power Station on Agua Hedionda Lagoon; a 16-kilometre pipeline that connects to the Water Authority’s regional distribution system; and upgrades to Water Authority facilities for distributing desalinated seawater throughout the region.
