preview

How Desalination Plants Help For Aid California 's Water Crisis

Better Essays

Robert Bergschneider
BRAE 340
Professor Gaudi
3/8/15
A Current Issue in California’s Water Future
How Desalination Plants may help to aid California’s Water Crisis
1.) Introduction
To whom it may concern;
The general problem is that California is in a drought. The state of California is searching high and low trying to find a sustainable source of water. The specific problem is that California is not able to produce a large amount of water, be that potable or water that may be able to be used in the extensive agricultural and industrial sectors that California is known for world wide.
A.) Background Since the discovery that desalination could provide humans in California with clean potable water from the ocean could be very effective, it …show more content…

B.) History of the Issue The issue of building desalination plants has been a hot topic of Californians in the past couple decades because researchers knew that our available surface and groundwater supplies are becoming scarce. This problem is important because California is home to a large population of people as well as extensive agricultural and industrial productions that need vast amounts of water. With the reduction in available ground and fresh water brings other problems that need to be addressed. Many farmers are having to impose stricter management policies in regards to how they use the water the pay so much for. Crops sensitive to the amount of water they receive or do not receive can be destroyed in a short amount of time if neglected of water. With the amount of fresh water accumulated by both snow melt of California’s mountains as well as ground water retrieved from wells and pumps being depleted faster than we can recharge those sources, farmers face further impacts. An article by Robert Glennon, “Unquenchable: Americas water crisis and what to do about it” says “In the summer of 2009, California is facing mandatory water rationing. Many farmers may be entirely cut off, costing the economy more than $1 billion and putting more

Get Access