Representatives of the Carlsbad Chamber of Commerce joined state and local officials early last month to celebrate the official start of construction of Poseidon Water's Carlsbad Desalination Project, which when complete will fulfill about 7 percent of San Diego County's water needs by converting seawater into high-quality drinking water.
The celebration, which was nearly 12 years in the making due to legal delays and other setbacks, was made possible by a 30-year water agreement reached late last year between Poseidon Water and the San Diego County Water Authority to buy up to 50 million gallons of desalinated seawater a day from the plant.
The ceremony marked the start of construction of the desalination plant, which will be located at the Encina Power Plant. The project also includes a 10-mile pipeline from the facility to an aqueduct connection facility in San Marcos, which is also being constructed. The entire project is expected to be operational in 2016.
"Today is a celebration and a thank you," said Poseidon Water CEO Carlos Riva. "We wanted to acknowledge the many people who have supported us and stood by us throughout the process and let them know that this project is going to be a reality and an important contributor to the economic growth of the region."
During the celebration, a video was shown that featured several key players in the development of the project speaking about what the desalination facility means to the community.
Among those interviewed were Ted Owen, the Chamber's president and CEO, who in the video commends Poseidon Water for its "major league perseverance" in the face of the long permitting process and the 14 lawsuits that were filed against the project, legal challenges which Poseidon overcame in court.
The Chamber was a strong ally of Poseidon Water during the long process. Chamber representatives spoke in favor of the project in countless regulatory hearings, in some cases shuttling chamber members in buses to demonstrate that the business community was firmly behind the project.
Riva said the support of the Chamber, which he noted "has been right there with us through the entire (permitting) process", and the business community was crucial to the project's success.
"The business community clearly understands the need for secure sources of water supply, particularly with concerns about drought and other potential disruptions to traditional supply sources," Riva said. "They've come out to support us when needed. They sent a message to elected officials that this was important."
In the video, Owen noted that the water plant will play a major part of Carlsbad' future.
"Water and electricity are the two biggest boons to a community that has a lot of them and they're the biggest hindrances to the communities that don't have any of them," Owen says in the video. "That's what makes Carlsbad great …. the fact that we have water and its availability is extremely important."
The celebration, which was nearly 12 years in the making due to legal delays and other setbacks, was made possible by a 30-year water agreement reached late last year between Poseidon Water and the San Diego County Water Authority to buy up to 50 million gallons of desalinated seawater a day from the plant.
The ceremony marked the start of construction of the desalination plant, which will be located at the Encina Power Plant. The project also includes a 10-mile pipeline from the facility to an aqueduct connection facility in San Marcos, which is also being constructed. The entire project is expected to be operational in 2016.
"Today is a celebration and a thank you," said Poseidon Water CEO Carlos Riva. "We wanted to acknowledge the many people who have supported us and stood by us throughout the process and let them know that this project is going to be a reality and an important contributor to the economic growth of the region."
During the celebration, a video was shown that featured several key players in the development of the project speaking about what the desalination facility means to the community.
Among those interviewed were Ted Owen, the Chamber's president and CEO, who in the video commends Poseidon Water for its "major league perseverance" in the face of the long permitting process and the 14 lawsuits that were filed against the project, legal challenges which Poseidon overcame in court.
The Chamber was a strong ally of Poseidon Water during the long process. Chamber representatives spoke in favor of the project in countless regulatory hearings, in some cases shuttling chamber members in buses to demonstrate that the business community was firmly behind the project.
Riva said the support of the Chamber, which he noted "has been right there with us through the entire (permitting) process", and the business community was crucial to the project's success.
"The business community clearly understands the need for secure sources of water supply, particularly with concerns about drought and other potential disruptions to traditional supply sources," Riva said. "They've come out to support us when needed. They sent a message to elected officials that this was important."
In the video, Owen noted that the water plant will play a major part of Carlsbad' future.
"Water and electricity are the two biggest boons to a community that has a lot of them and they're the biggest hindrances to the communities that don't have any of them," Owen says in the video. "That's what makes Carlsbad great …. the fact that we have water and its availability is extremely important."