Long Beach Desalination Project Receives More Federal Funding

Long Beach, CA - The United States Congress passed an omnibus appropriations bill for FY 2003 spending late Thursday evening, nearly five months into the Fiscal Year. Included in the omnibus appropriations measure is $1 million for the Long Beach Desalination Project. Also included, is $1.8 million for the Long Beach Water Reuse Project, aimed at expanding the City’s use of reclaimed water. President Bush is expected to sign the bill next week.

With the passage of the FY’03 omnibus spending bill, the Long Beach Water Department received its second $1 million earmark in two years for design and construction of a prototype desalination research and development facility that will be located at the Haynes Generation Station, operated by the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, in Long Beach. Total cost of the project is $5.4 million.

The Long Beach Water Department currently operates a desalination pilot plant, which uses a unique membrane technology, developed by Long Beach Water Department engineers, to desalinate seawater. The technology is known as the “Long Beach Method.” Independent analyses show the technology to be 20 to 30 percent more energy efficient than traditional desalination methods.

“This technology, among other things, will be tested further in a larger scale prototype seawater desalination research and development facility, in partnership with the United States Bureau of Reclamation and the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power,” stated Ryan Alsop, Manager of Government & Public Affairs. “Continued federal investment in the Long Beach Desalination Project will verify and further develop energy savings and optimize the process so that it can be enlarged and duplicated throughout the United States."

The project is currently in design with construction commencing this year.