Charles Meyer Desalination Plant Background Information

Santa Barbara Pier 

Finally, I shall begin to discuss the Charles Meyer Desalination Plant. The plant facility was originally built in 1991 in response to a five year long drought. The $34 million facility was actually never used for anything but test runs. Shortly after construction was completed, the miracle march rains began. This gave the city enough freshwater supplies to manage county's water without the desalination facility. Now, the desalination facility, that has been dormant for 22 years, may be reopened. The city of Santa Barbara is concerned about the current drought and some believe that the desalination plant would offer a more reliable and drought-resistant source of water. In 2011, the City of Santa Barbara released a long-term water supply plan. In this plan, the city is advised by the Water Resources Division and Public Works Department of Santa Barbara to reactivate the Charles Meyer Plant in the event of a six year drought. 2014 marks the third year of a drought and since the desalination facility would need two years to reactivate, the city must make a decision soon. In the next few blog posts, I will discuss more important facts about the Charles Meyer Desalination Plant. A short profile of the desalination facility can be found on the City of Santa Barbara website:
 http://civicaweb.santabarbaraca.gov/gov/depts/pw/resources/system/sources/desalination.asp