Desalinization

[arcticpenguin]

http://www.cnn.com/2003/TECH/science/03/25/tapping.thebay.ap/index.html

Tampa Bay, Florida is opening up a desalinization plant.

[Thumper]

Besides the incredible amounts of energy needed to run those plants, and teh salty brine output, they are a god-send to areas that lack sufficient water resources.

However, I would seriously wonder if Tampa Bay really needs the extra water, or if they would do just fine if people conserved more.

[Phaycops]

I was struck by this quote:

Other environmental groups, including the Audubon Society and Sierra Club, have said they have not seen any data that shows the fears are founded....

People, if the Sierra Club is saying it's safe, it probably is. I shudder to think that the groups opposing the plant are more alarmist than the Sierra Club.

Just for the record, the Sierra Club are the ones who want to ban all non-hiking traffic from all trails in some National Parks on the basis that anything except hiking causes erosion. Not hiking, though. Nosiree. Some of their more extreme members sabatoge trails with things like wires strung across the trails to clothesline mountain bikers. In England, a mountain biker was killed this way, and died in front of his two preteen sons.

[arcticpenguin]

Originally posted by Thumper
Besides the incredible amounts of energy needed to run those plants, and teh salty brine output, they are a god-send to areas that lack sufficient water resources.

I would think they would be able to make use of solar power in the plant. Maybe not even photovoltaic c ells, maybe just solar heating of water or some such, just to take advantage of the Southern climate.

[Soapy Sam]

Desal plants supply much of the water to several cities in Arabia. Cheap energy is something of a requirement, but they do work.

I'd like to hear details of the biker killed in England. As both a cyclist and hiker, I'm intrigued.