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Pages 1-12

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From page 1...
... Traditional sources of supply are increasingly expensive, unavailable, or controversial, but desalination technology offers the potential to substantially reduce water scarcity by converting the almost inexhaustible supply of seawater and the apparently vast quantities of brackish groundwater into new sources of freshwater. Although total water use in the United States has remained steady over recent decades, interest in brackish water and seawater desalination will likely continue, particularly in water-scarce regions, in localities experiencing rapid population growth, or where users are able and willing to pay for a high-quality, reliable new supply.
From page 2...
... All water management and planning takes place in the context of economic, social, environmental, and political factors, and these factors are far more important than technological desalination process constraints in limiting the potential for desalination to help meet anticipated water supply needs. As a result, this report addresses key technological issues that may lend themselves to focused research and development efforts, but the report also addresses nontechnical questions that may ultimately prove to be more limiting.
From page 3...
... A strategic desalination research and development effort can help make desalination a more attractive water supply option for communities facing water shortages and can enable desalination technology to serve a larger role in addressing the nation's water demands. The two main goals of this research and development effort should be (1)
From page 4...
... Given the large research investment, however, private-sector funding for high-risk activities is estimated to be roughly equivalent to federal funding for high-risk research. STATE OF DESALINATION TECHNOLOGY The state of desalination technology, including intakes, pretreatment, desalination processes, post-treatment, and concentrate management, is outlined in Chapter 4.
From page 5...
... Hybrid membrane–thermal desalination approaches offer additional operational flexibility and opportunities for water production cost savings for facilities co-located with power plants. • Few, if any, cost-effective environmentally sustainable concentrate management options exist for inland desalination facilities.
From page 6...
... There is a considerable amount of uncertainty about the environmental impacts of desalination and, consequently, concern over its potential effects. Therefore, the following research is recommended: • Site-specific assessments of the impacts of source water withdrawals and concentrate management should be conducted and the results synthesized in a national assessment of potential impacts.
From page 7...
... There have been significant reductions in membrane costs and improvements in the energy efficiency of the desalination process. Perhaps more significant, the costs of other alternatives for augmenting water supplies have continued to rise, making desalination production costs more attractive in a relative sense.
From page 8...
... • For brackish water desalination, the costs of concentrate management can vary enormously from project to project and may rival energy and capital costs as the largest single component of cost. The high cost of environmentally sustainable concentrate management at some inland locations ultimately offsets the cost advantage that can be obtained from utilizing feed waters with lower salinity.
From page 9...
... Even so, concerns about potential environmental impacts continue to limit the application of desalination technology in the United States, and desalination remains a higher-cost alternative for water supply in many communities. In order for desalination to become a more attractive water supply option for communities facing water shortages, two overarching long-term research goals need to be met: 1.
From page 10...
... Uncertainties regarding environmental impacts and ways to mitigate these impacts are some of the largest hurdles to implementation of desalination in the United States, and research in these areas has the greatest potential for enabling desalination to help meet future water needs in communities facing water shortages. Priority areas of environmental research are discussed in Chapters 5 and 8.
From page 11...
... c. Develop protocols and conduct field studies to assess the impacts of concentrate management approaches in inland and coastal settings*
From page 12...
... Research cannot address all barriers to increased application of desalination technology in regions facing water scarcity concerns; thus, practical desalination implementation issues that pertain to water providers are discussed in Chapter 7. Recommendations in Chapter 7 include building trust and educating the public on desalination project planning, anticipating the sometimes cumbersome regulatory and permitting process, and utilizing pilot testing to optimize the process design.


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