Region L: San Antonio Water System Seawater Desalination Project
- Category:
- Recommended
- Total capital cost (2008):
- $873,760,000
- Capacity:
- 84,012 acre-feet per year by 2060
- Startup decade:
- 2060
- Description:
- This seawater desalination water management strategy provides for a major desalination water treatment plant on the Texas coast and the infrastructure for transferring potable water from the coast to the major municipal demand center of the South Central Texas Region. The entire strategy consists of the intake, water treatment plant, storage tanks, pumping stations and a 126-mile pipeline. This water management strategy utilizes a source of water that is essentially unlimited; however, costs of treatment and location for brine discharge (as may affect marine habitat and species) remain concerns.
- Location:
- The proposed location of the desalination facilities is near Seadrift on San Antonio Bay, which is part of the estuary of the San Antonio and Guadalupe Rivers. The location of the proposed facility is shown in the following figure.
Location map of SAWS' seawater desalination project:
Source: All information derived from 2011 approved regional water plan
