Comments on: Can Desalination Projects Remedy California’s Drought Problem?

By: Susan Kraemer

Susan Kraemer — Sun, 21 Jun 2009 00:52:09 +0000

Absolutely Jeff – it’s insane the amount of fossil fuels these things can use – but it can be done with sea wind and solar – the seawater greenhouse

http://dotcommodity.blogspot.com/2008/09/desalination-using-just-sunshine-wind.html

By: Reenita Malhotra

Reenita Malhotra — Sun, 31 May 2009 03:41:29 +0000

Jeff, according to Food & Water Watch, ocean desalination projects can be 10 times as energy intensive as other supply sources.

According to Meng Lean, manager of microfluidic systems at the Palo Alto Research Center (PARC), the energy cost of desalination runs at about eight times that of conventional water, with the most efficient plants requiring 15 watts per gallon, per hour. See this link:
http://venturebeat.com/2008/06/12/water-scarcity-woes-point-to-big-opportunities-in-desalination/

Now in North Africa and the Middle East, there is a push to a push to shift to alternative sources of energy, such as solar energy, since solar radiation is abundant in this region all year round. See this link:
http://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/enepol/v36y2008i5p1748-1756.html

GE Global Research, is also developing affordable water desalination systems powered by renewable energy.

By: Jeff McIntire-Strasburg

Jeff McIntire-Strasburg — Sat, 30 May 2009 20:15:11 +0000

What are the energy requirements for desalination? I seem to remember reading it’s a pretty energy-intensive process, but am not positive…

By: Ricardo Williams

Ricardo Williams — Fri, 29 May 2009 21:21:50 +0000

I feel bad for California, they always got something bad going on lol