This is a talk on seawater desalination I gave in Seaside California on October 19th, 2010. It is divided in two parts.
Part I contains information on seawater desalination and how the process can impact the marine environment.
Part II provides specific examples of how brine discharged from these plants can affect species, especially eggs and developing young.
It ends with an illustration of how water recycling could be a better long-term solution to our looming water crisis on the Monterey Peninsula and in the State of California.
1. Desalination of
The Sea Around Us
Learn About
– Desalination methods
– Marine ecosystem impacts
– Benefits of renewable
water
Tuesday, October 19 @ 6:30 pm
Peace Resource Center
1364 Fremont Blvd, Seaside
Sustainable Seaside presents
Carol Reeb, Ph.D.
Hopkins Marine Station, Stanford University
2. Hello and thanks for joining me.
This is a talk on seawater desalination I gave
in Seaside California on October 19th, 2010. It is
divided in two parts. Part I contains information on
seawater desalination and how the process can impact
the marine environment.
Part II provides specific examples of how
brine discharged from these plants can affect species,
especially eggs and developing young. It ends with an
illustration of how water recycling could be a better
long-term solution to our looming water crisis on the
Monterey Peninsula and in the State of California.
Thank you for listening.
C. Reeb
7. Desalination’s Future In California
Redrawn from:
Desalination, With a
Grain of Salt: A
California Perspective
Cooley et al., 2006, Pacific
Institute.
23 in State
8 around
Monterey Bay
8 plants on
Monterey Bay
Desalination Plants
8. “California has a $46B a year ocean
economy, the largest of the 50 states.
There is hardly a job in our region that is not
in some way connected to the ocean.”
*Bill Monning, Julie Packard and Chuck Della Sala
Guest Commentary, 8/22/10
Monterey Herald
10. …80 % of natural
spawning grounds in
the Sacramento River
have been destroyed
by mines, dams, and
diversion of water for
irrigation…
March 17, 1921
Monterey Peninsula Herald
May 27, 1932
Monterey Public Library Archives
11. …80 % of natural
spawning grounds in
the Sacramento River
have been destroyed
by mines, dams, and
diversion of water for
irrigation…
March 17, 1921
Monterey Peninsula Herald
May 27, 1932
Monterey Public Library Archives
Monterey Salmon
From: DIVISION OF FISH AND
GAME OF CALIFORNIA
1928
12. Photo credit: National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration
(NOAA)
http://www.noaanews.noaa.gov/stories2010/20100111_damremoval.html
San Clemente Dam after heavy rains.
27. Brine Plume
The Movie
5 mls of high salinity brine (62 ppt)
was labeled with dye and
discharged into a 20 gallon
aquarium filled with seawater (34
ppt). Typical brine waste
concentrations range from 60 – 70
ppt.
28. Brine Plume
The Movie
Brine does mix with ambient
seawater…but the plume is sinking
which suggests that mixing is
incomplete.
29. Brine Plume
The Movie
Brine Field
What impacts will a layer of brine
have on marine species living on the
seafloor?
30. Long-term Brine Accumulation
in the Persian Gulf
LIWA OASIS, ABU DHABI -
“The Gulf is a closed system with
little freshwater inflow. By
excessively desalinating seawater,
the Gulf states are killing off their
main supply. The concentration of
salt in Gulf seawater now stands at 45
grams per liter, above the 40-gram level
at which desalination works efficiently, Mr. Dawoud said.“
Drawn from information in: Lattemann and Höpner. 2008. Environmental impact and impact assessment
of seawater desalination. Desalination 220:1-15.
Desalination Plants
31. Long-term Persistence of Red Tide in Monterey Bay
2007
Source: Central and Northern California Ocean Observing System (CeNCOOS)
Elkhorn Slough
32. Red Tide
Monterey Bay, a “Red Tide Incubator”
Harmful algae and their potential
impacts on desalination operations off
southern California.
Water Research 44(2010)385 – 416
Anthropogenic causes of jellyfish blooms and their
direct consequences for humans: a review.
MARINE ECOLOGY PROGRESS SERIES Vol. 350: 153–174, 2007
Red Tide off La Jolla, CA, 2005
Photo Credit: A. Diaz, Wikipedia Commons
The catastrophic 2008-2009 red tide in the Arabian gulf
region, with observations on the identification and
phylogeny of the fish-killing dinoflagelate Cochlodinium
polykrikoides. Harmful Algae 9 (2010) 163-172
33. Conclusions
• Seawater Intake
– Impingement/Entrainment
• Mitigated by coastal wells.
– Harmful Algae Blooms
• Mitigated with coastal wells and regular water testing for toxins.
• Brine Waste Discharge
– High salt concentration is toxic to marine life
• High velocity jet diffusers can help mixing.
• Retention of brine along coast is poorly studied.
– Toxic cleaning chemicals also suspended in brine
• Effects are largely unknown.