FINAL REPORT Evaluation of Seawater Desalination Projects ...

EVALUATION OF SEAWATER DESALINATION PROJECTS
PROPOSED FOR THE MONTEREY PENINSULA
7 Implementability
• Schedule identified
• Permits identified, secured, and/or degree of difficulty
• Easements and agreements identified or secured
• Environmental impacts or environmental documentation
Permits Identified, Secured, and/or Degree of Difficulty
The permits and consultations 49 required for withdrawal of seawater are many. The list in
Table 11 of this report is taken from the environmental documentation provided for this
review by the proponents of the four projects discussed in this report.
The environmental document reviewed for the Coastal Water Project (CWP) is the Proponent’s
Environmental Assessment (PEA) 50 submitted by California American Water (CAW) to the
California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) as part of CAW’s application for a
Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity (CPCN) to build, own, and operate the
CWP.
Documents reviewed for the Monterey Bay Regional Seawater Desalination Project
(MBRSDP) state that the temporary pilot plant test facility is exempt from the requirements
of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). Pajaro/Sunny Mesa Community
Services District (P/SMCSD, the project proponent) states that they will be the lead agency
in evaluating CEQA compliance for the full-scale MBRSDP. P/SMCSD anticipates that an
Environmental Impact Report will be prepared for the project.
The environmental document reviewed for the Sand City Desalination Project is the Board
Review Draft EIR for the MPWMD Water Supply Project, December 2003.
49 Consultation is used here in a general sense and not in a legal sense used to describe guidance and established
national policy for conducting consultation and conferences pursuant to Section 7 of the Endangered Species
Act of 1973.
50 RBF Consulting, California American Water, Coastal Water Project – Proponent’s Environmental
Assessment for the Coastal Water Project, CPUC Proceeding A.04-09-019, July 14, 2005. The PEA is
submitted pursuant to CPUC regulations described in Section 2.3.1 (CPUC CEQA Compliance).
Monterey Peninsula Water Management District 7-1