TEL AVIV – Israeli water giant IDE Technologies opened the largest desalination plant in the Western hemisphere in California last week, JSpacenews reported.

 
The new facility, constructed as part of an endeavor called the Poseidon project, will combat regional droughts by generating an estimated 190 million liters of desalinated water daily for residents of southern California.
 
“Since the last major drought here a little over 20 years ago, the San Diego region has worked to conserve water as well as identify new water sources,” California Assembly Speaker Toni Atkins said at the official opening ceremony last Tuesday.
 
“The Poseidon project not only provides San Diego County with a drought-proof water supply, it also demonstrates how California can meet the water needs of future generations.”
 
The hope is that the venture will be the key to solving the water crisis in California, a state that has been suffering from serious droughts in recent years.
 
The plant was named after former Carlsbad Mayor Claude “Bud” Lewis.
 
“Dedication of the Carlsbad Desalination Plant marks a major milestone in California water history,” said Mark Weston, chair of the Water Authority’s Board of Directors. “The Water Authority and its member agencies have been aggressively diversifying the region’s water supply for decades, and the Carlsbad Desalination Plant is a major component of that effort. We crafted a strategy of conservation and innovation in the early 1990s, and today it is protecting our $218 billion economy and the quality of life enjoyed by 3.2 million residents.
 
“The Claude ‘Bud’ Lewis Carlsbad Desalination Plant opens a new chapter in water supply reliability for the San Diego region and the state by tapping the potential of the Pacific Ocean and reducing dependence on strained resources such as the Sacramento-San Joaquin Bay-Delta. It is bolstering the San Diego region’s self-reliance, and in turn, its future.”
 
IDE Americas Inc. CEO Mark Lambert said, “IDE Technologies is thrilled to bring its experience designing and operating some of the world’s most advanced seawater desalination plants to the United States. With operations under way in Carlsbad, we are putting the ‘Pacific on tap’ for San Diego County, bolstering the region’s water reliability for decades to come.”