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Water is good for Texas
Desalination
One of the strategies Texas is using to increase its water supply is desalination.
San Antonio
Water System’s
H2Oaks
Center is home to one
of the largest groundwater
desalination plants
in Texas. The facility
also uses aquifer storage
and
recovery (ASR) to
serve nearly
2 million
customers.
- Desalination is the removal of excess salt and other minerals from groundwater, surface water, seawater or reclaimed water sources to create fresh water.
- Desalination makes otherwise unusable water suitable for human consumption, irrigation, industrial applications and other purposes.
- About 1 percent of the world’s population currently receives its drinking water from desalination.
Desalination Plants
Worldwide
Approximately 12,500 desalination facilities in 120 countries
United States
More than 400 municipal brackish groundwater desalination plants in the U.S.
Texas
53 municipal desalination plants
Desalination Process
The desalination process usually incorporates either thermal or reverse osmosis technologies:
In thermal desalination, saltwater is heated up, and the resulting water vapor is condensed and collected. In reverse osmosis desalination, saltwater is pushed through a series of filtering membranes at high pressure to remove salt, certain minerals and other contaminants.
- Desalinated water is generally more expensive than many other water sources.
- The TWDB estimated the average cost to produce one acre-foot of desalinated water from brackish groundwater ranges from $357 to $782.
- The average cost to produce one acre-foot of desalinated water from seawater ranges from $800 to $1,400 due to higher saline concentrations.
- Since 1989, the TWDB has financed 46 desalination projects in Texas with a total value of $612 million.
- Texas’ desal facilities have the combined capacity to produce 157 million gallons per day.
- Brackish groundwater plants: 36
- Brackish surface water plants: 16
- Wastewater plants: 1
- Seawater: 0
Desalinated water plays an important role in certain Texas industries
The industrial desalination capacity in the state is estimated to be about 60-100 million gallons per day, with a total capacity of 12 million gallons per day primarily utilized in the oil and gas and semiconductor sectors.
The TWDB’s 2022 State Water Plan Recommendations for Desalination
Sources: Texas Desalination Association; Texas Water Development Board
| Strategy | Number of Regional Water Planning Groups |
NEW WATER SUPPLY BY 2070 (IN ACRE FEET) |
SHARE OF ALL RECOMMENDED WATER MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES |
|---|---|---|---|
| Groundwater | 9 | 157,000 | 2.0% |
| Surface Water | 3 | 63,000 | 0.8% |
| Seawater | 3 | 192,000 | 2.5% |
This is one in a series of reports the Comptroller has prepared on water in Texas.