MWD move will not affect Carlsbad desalination, says Poseidon

Poseidon Resources on 16 June 2011 denied reports that the current standoff in Southern California between the Metropolitan Water District (MWD) and the San Diego County Water Authority (SDCWA) will affect the Carlsbad Desalination Project.

Scott Maloni for Poseidon the company building the project, told D&WR, “This claim is incorrect and shows a disappointing lack of understanding about the project’s status and financing.”

On 14 June 2011, the MWD voted to cancel funding to increase water recycling at the San Vincente facility in the Ramona Municipal Water District and for programs to encourage local water-use efficiency and retrofit homes with low-water-use landscaping. MWD also said it would refuse to fund any pending or future local water supply projects in San Diego County.

A press release from SDCWA stated, “The pending agreements included the Carlsbad Seawater Desalination Project, which would have been eligible for up to US$ 14 million in annual payments, and an agricultural water conservation audit program, which would have been eligible for up to US$ 500,000 in annual funding.”

MWD’s move is the latest in a dispute about SDCWA contributions to MWD projects that goes back decades. In June 2010, SDCWA filed a lawsuit challenging MWD’s 2011 and 2012 wholesale water rates. The water authority alleged that MWD improperly overcharged for the transportation of water and used that money to lower artificially the cost of MWD water.

The next hearing in the lawsuit is on 17 June 2011, and a final decision is not expected until 2012.