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The House Committee on Natural Resources met on October 18, 2022, to hear public testimony on desalination efforts and projects in the state. An archive of this meeting can be found here.

 

This report is intended to give you an overview and highlight of the various topics taken up. It is not a verbatim transcript of the discussions but is based upon what was audible or understandable to the observer and the desire to get details out as quickly as possible with few errors or omissions.

 

Public Testimony

Erika Mancha, TWDB

  • 2022 biannual report update on seawater desalination process and brackish groundwater desalination
  • No active sea water desalination plant in Texas; Corpus Christi looking to create a plant
  • Municipal desalination capacity increasing steadily across Texas, desalination plan database has 53 desalination plants of municipal use with 25000 gallons per day, Total capacity of 157 M gallons per day
  • Largest desalination plant in state and country is Kate Bailey Hutchison Plant, predominantly uses reverse osmosis
  • Texas is estimated to have 2.5 B feed of brackish groundwater; Goal of Brackish Resources Aquifer Characterization system (BRACS) database program is to map and characterize brackish groundwater; 15 studies completed and 4ongoing studies
  • 2019-2021 appropriated $2 M to the TWDB, two interagency contracts to undertake 6 technical tasks on groundwater studies
  • Lack of data on brackish water wells in aquifers, don’t collect full suite of geophysical logs and water quality samples at all intervals, attempting to close data gap and advance brackish aquifer mapping
  • 2032 extension for designating brackish ground water production zones in the state; will evaluate 16 aquifers in the future

 

Matt Nelson, TWDB

  • Recommended desalination (desal) strategy projects include 3 categories; seawater, groundwater, and surface water; first planning cycle for regional groups to consider groundwater if there is a shortage
  • 10 regions that recommend projects, 3 regions recommending 7 seawater desal, 39 ground water desal projects; and 10 surface water desal mainly in three counties
  • 5 seawater desal plants slated for 2030 online dates; proximity to coast is key for seawater desal which is the second most expensive by unit of water, high operating costs
  • Recommended groundwater desal projects mostly in west and south Texas; 39 with a few large ones; notable obstacle to recommending groundwater desal in rural areas is difficulty finding people who can run a sophisticated project
  • Paul- In Brazoria County you were talking about potable water being expensive; is that for industry?
    • There are some in industry that wouldn’t have to be up to a higher standard with higher levels of expense
  • Paul- In Corpus there could be potable for citizens?
    • Depends on who the user is and the quality of water they need
  • Paul- Cost difference between industrial and potable water for seawater desalination?
    • Don’t exactly know; both won’t be cheap
  • Paul- What has to be done to seawater to make it potable?
    • Dependent on end use; some industries require really high-quality water; typically have pretreatment standards
  • Paul- Groundwater plants use reverse osmosis and what do seawater plants use?
    • They also use reverse osmosis, difference in recovery rate is it’s only 50% for seawater
  • King- Are any ground water plants currently in existence in these plans you listed previously?
    • There is some overlap; some are expansions on existing systems and some are new

 

Kim Nygren, TCEQ

  • There are two water right permitting options; one is the typical route and one expedited; difference is the timeframe with only 60 days for the expedited; limited types of groups allowed expedited option including industrial group and any use within zones designated by Texas Parks and Wildlife
  • Expedited have additional monthly water quality samples and more proscriptive training requirements; haven’t received any applications for the expedited process
  • Have issued one of the three applicants a permit for seawater desalination through the typical route

 

Robert Sadlier, TCEQ

  • Desal creates a stream of product and a stream of reject water; state administers National Pollutant Discharge Program which has regulatory authority over discharge of pollutants into surface water
  • Facilities must be permitted, go through a multistep review process, public notice mailed to adjacent property owners and interested parties, and facility required to publish permit in a newspaper; once draft permit is complete another public notice is completed with a 30-day period for comment
  • Wilson- What kind of follow up once permits are granted happens with the discharge?
    • There are monitoring and reporting limits that applicants report on online system and TCEQ enforcement office monitor those reports; don’t know frequency of inspection for facilities but enforcement office is responsible for those inspections
  • Wilson – We have 39 active groundwater desalination plants in the states so are there any instances where there has been reporting of poor outcomes?
    • Not aware of any, but can look further into that
  • King- Fair to assume most inspections are done because of someone complaining?
    • That’s an accurate assumption, there’s a schedule for certain facilities but it doesn’t include every facility in the state
  • Paul- Does the seawater plant discharge right back into sea or is there’s a treatment required before putting it back into the sea?
    • There is a requirement for it to be treated before it goes back into the sea
  • Paul- And the groundwater is cleaned to TCEQ’s standards before it goes back into the environment?
    • That’s correct

 

Kyle Fraizer, Texas Desalination Association

  • Gives background on desalination history for the committee
  • El Paso improving discharge before putting into environment; most plants discharge into more saline aquifers
  • Drought levels are still very high and similar to those of August, slightly lower; makes it difficult for businesses to plan out water need, Brazos River extremely depleted
  • Expense of expanding reservoirs and desal plants is high, will need to come to realization of looking at other and more expensive sources too
  • Brackish desalination is $2-4 per thousand, seawater desalination is $4-6 per thousand, will always be blended rates because desalination will not be the only source of water
  • Need to have very extensive conservation efforts and need reuse projects
  • This legislative cycle we are in a unique position with excess money; water infrastructure good place to benefit large number of people over a long period of time
  • Gamez – Is there any light at the end of the tunnel with increasing costs as technology advances?
    • It’s come down considerably over the last 20 years; improvement in membrane technology; biggest cost is power so should put gas powered plant next to desal plant and aim to reduce power cost
  • Paul- Can’t keep building so many lakes, seawater must play a role; What other countries have built large scale seawater plants that you can use as a model?
    • Some on the committee have gone to Israel, utilization of water technology is a great example; plant in Carlsbad is a great plant to look at for an example too; they do about 50 million gallons per day (MGD)
  • Harris- Regularly see surface rights being sold away to DFW region; How aggressively are other areas outside of East Texas pursuing desal?
    • Not very, only have anecdotal evidence; every city should be seeking new water as much as San Antonio
  • Local regions are very dependent on building reservoirs
  • Cody- What can we as a body do to help this?
    • I don’t know how to light a fire in users; can’t wait to do this at the last second; need leadership to plan for the next 50-60 years
    • No one considering that surface water reservoirs have a 100-year lifespan which ending in the 2050s and we have longer hotter summers; single most important issue to legislative cycle is water
  • Need to reduce size of exclusion zones around ejection sites to increase available water
  • Bowers- How much longer will we have water supply when it comes to desal in a reservoir?
    • If you look at brackish water available to use now if we were to have a desal plant for it, we have 2 billion available which is not endless but pretty close
  • Bowers- This wouldn’t hit the consumers pocketbook too hard?
    • For the most part our water that we currently have is inexpensive, so I don’t think there’s any way around the consumers being unhappy about an increase except for educating them on the needs for desalination

 

Rebecca Grande, Texas Association of Business

  • Thanks committee for efforts to improve desalination capabilities in the state
  • Should utilize gulf coast resources and implement seawater desal, long run cost of seawater desal is worth expense to consumer
  • Replication of Israeli seawater desal plant could save consumers money while increasing water supply drastically

 

John Niland, Invenergy

  • Provides history of Invenergy and their projects to utilize natural resources in innovative ways
  • Leading effort on the Freeport Seawater Desalination Project which would serve Brazoria and Fort Bend counites with part of Houston region
  • Water needs in the region are increasing and driven by population growth, stressed resources, drought, and economic growth
  • Water demand will surpass supply in 2023 in Region H which includes Brazoria and Fort Bend counties; needs will likely be greater than expected due to fast paced growth
  • In Houston ground water extraction is causing subsidence which is a problem
  • Water rights in Texas basins have largely been allocated for surface water; should look to desalination plants for brackish and seawater
  • Brazos Port Desalination Center will serve need with a completion date target of 2025 which is on schedule
  • Water rights should be exchanged for use in land locked counties upstream to limit water loss by evaporation as it flows down the river
  • Invenergy has expertise to bring seawater desalination to Texas and looks forward to working with the committee and other relevant state agencies; recommends legislation and funding
  • Cody-What specific regulatory actions do you recommend?
    • A water rights exchange program which may have potential to use water rights held in predominantly lower half of Brazos river and release right upstream in exchange for a capacity payment
  • Paul- The facility will be 25 MGD?
    • We are going to permit to 50 MGD but are developing in two 25 MGD blocks and will provide water to Brazos Water Authority
  • Paul- The BWA would add minerals or chemicals in the processing plants right now?
    • Right, we are treating water to meet their raw water specifications

 

Michael Esparza, City Manager of Alice

  • Purchase raw water from Corpus Christi and take it to a water treatment plant which is not drought resistant
  • Developing secondary and uninterrupted water supply starting with two water wells for brackish desalination plant
  • Issued request for a proposal and chose Seven Seas Water for design, construction, and operation of the water plant; chose a private company because price was lower and shifted risks from city to the firm
  • Expect funding for phase 2 in the next 60 days; phase 1 has been completed
  • Bowers- Why does your water gallon level decrease?
    • The two wells that are slated are 2 MGD wells and will get 3 MGD that we can use; 1 MGD will be reject water

 

Richard Whiting, Seven Seas Water Group

  • Details Seven Sea purpose and the partnership with the city of Alice which has a 15-year term contract and then ownership of the plant will transfer to City of Alice
  • Requires Seven Seas to produce water amount outlined in contract or they won’t get paid
  • By classifying as a P3 reduced the states cost and will enable state to assist in many more projects; encourage legislature to look for ways to incentivize project similar to theirs
  • Should look to science and cost of intake and outflow options for seawater desalination
  • Intake and outflow structures involve careful design considerations; moving structures offshore can increase cost of project and not lower environment impact
  • Intake needs to meet the requirements of the Clean Water Act
  • Discusses Texas shore geography and that intake should be further than surf to meet required depth of 40 feet of water, suitable plant location might be 1-1.5 miles from shoreline making the intake pipeline length up to 3 miles, estimated to be $250 M, much of cost is tunnel boring machine and technology
  • Seawater outflow purpose is to return concentrate; need to use diffusers to mitigate potential effects of concentrate on marine life; a 3 mile outflow would be roughly $80 M
  • 50 MGD for the plant but will increase cost by 230% if the pipeline is moved offshore and increase cost per thousand to $9
  • State needs to develop clear guidelines specific to onshore intakes and outflows to address permitting and environmental impacts; good technology of onshore intakes can provide better environmental protections than offshore intakes

 

Alex Ortiz, Lone Star Chapter of the Sierra Club

  • Concern in Texas that TCEQ has failed to adopt numeric salinity gradient standards, special concern to bays and estuaries; TCEQ collects data on salinity gradients
  • Need to develop standards along the coast to move forward with seawater desalination because there aren’t clear rules on environmental or industry sides
  • King- When you speak of surface water standards are you talking about discharge back into the gulf?
    • Both water discharge into stream and bays and estuaries; no numeric salinity gradient standards for either; current code states the numeric salinity gradient standards not established because of studies going on for over 25 years
  • King- Have you done any research to look at brackish water and desal efforts in other states to see what they have done?
    • No, I haven’t done any widespread comparison

 

Jessica Eubanks, Self

  • Important to see actions to fight climate change; desalination addresses a symptom not a cause
  • Asks to incorporate goals and objectives to put Texas on path to net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 with 50% decrease by 2030