Disadvantages Of California Drought

Many disasters occur around the world every year, with droughts being one of them. Droughts can be a very subjective disaster ranging in explanations depending on who you ask. Whether you ask a meteorologist, a farmer, or your average neighbor, the common factor is water shortages. These shortages are usually gradual and, once realized, can wreck serious havoc on the surrounding environment including agriculture, aquatic life, human’s day-to-day life, and many more. Dry periods and droughts have the same characteristics; however, what sets them apart is the amount of time that has passed since a below average rainfall has occurred. Biomes all over the country receive various amounts of rain ranging from just a few inches to over one hundred

The newest addition will be able to produce 54 million gallons of fresh water daily for the county of San Diego. The basics behind the technology is reverse osmosis. Seawater is pumped into high pressured tanks and is forced through membranes which removes salt and all organic matter, leaving you with drinkable water (Talbot, 2014). California is building the biggest desalination plant in the United States, owned and operated by Carlsbad. While millions of gallons of fresh water will be produced, it will only be enough to add up to 10 percent of the county’s needs, however; it will provide a much needed supply of water and lead to advancements for times that might be worse than this. While the process has its benefits, it doesn’t come without a price tag. Again, the entire plant will cost $1 billion to construct and using this process will provide the state with the most expensive source of fresh water. An estimated average of $2,000 per acre-foot, this is the amount of water used by two five person households in one year, will be the cost of water coming from these machines. Apart from the cost of the water, the energy expended by the process is astonishing to say the least. With over 35 megawatts used per year, costing the operators $35 million, it’s no secret that the desalination process is also an electricity hog; the same amount of energy can be compared to that used by 30,000 households in one year. However, the process is not stopping here; MIT researchers are planning on building membranes that are a single atom thick to allow water molecules to “pop” right on through without much needed pressure. This would allow smaller plants and an overall energy savings between 15-46 percent (Talbot,