User:Slucy236/Robert W. Goldsworthy Groundwater Desalter

Robert W. Goldsworthy Groundwater Desalter

The Robert W. Goldsworthy Groundwater Desalter is a reverse osmosis groundwater desalter treatment facility located in Torrance, California. It is named for former Water Replenishment District (WRD) director Robert W. Goldsworthy, who served on the Board of Directors between 1988 and 2003.

WRD's regional brackish water reclamation program has been successful for 17 years starting with the completion of this facility in 2001. This desalter facility runs 24 hours a day on its own with the capacity of cleaning up to 2.5 million gallons of water per day amounting to about 2,200 acre-feet per year (AFY) . The product water for potable use this facility creates is delivered for use by the City's distribution system.

History

Public Works Director, Robert J. Beste, adopted a resolution to apply for grant funding to cover this project. Its purpose came from the need to replenish the low groundwater levels in Southern California. Excessive pumping in the Silverado basin started in the first half of the 20th century where groundwater levels dropped low enough to allow seawater intrusion into the freshwater aquifer within the basin. To prevent further intrusion of seawater, the West Coast Barrier Project was implemented. The West Coast Barrier Project consists of a series of freshwater injection wells along the coastal boundary of the basin. While this project succeeded in reducing additional seawater intrusion, a large amount of saline water was trapped inland of the barrier with high chloride (salt) concentrations. To address the problem, the Water Replenishment District of Southern California decided in the 1990's to build the Goldsworthy Groundwater Desalter. The Robert W. Goldsworthy Groundwater Desalter came at a price of $3,000,000 and it's expansion is at an estimated amount of $22,369,547.

Operations

The Robert W. Goldsworthy Groundwater Desalter works by processing water through a reverse osmosis system. Water extracted from the aquifer is forced through reverse-osmosis (RO) membranes and the salt is removed from the water. After the water passes through the membranes, the pH is adjusted and the water is disinfected. Once treated, the water is of very high quality and exceeds all federal and state drinking water standards.

The City is responsible for operation and maintenance of the treatment plant under contract with the Water Replenishment District of Southern California. The Water Replenishment District is currently completing an expansion of the Goldsworthy Groundwater Desalter facility that will increase the treatment capacity to 4,800 AFY with the addition of two new source water wells, associated conveyance pipelines and pump stations.

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Groundwater Desalter Process and Purpose in Torrance, CA by the Water Replenishment District of Southern California.

Torrance Desalter Extension

The Torrance Desalter Extension is an expansion of the already operating Robert W. Goldsworthy Groundwater Desalter. It is expected to start operating on June 30, 2018 and will double the potable amount of seawater already being pumped by the Robert W. Goldsworthy Groundwater Desalter. It has the capacity of providing 60-80% of the city's water needs. It will double the capacity of the already existing desalter from 2.5 million to 5 million gallons per day, the amount used by 15,000 households.

Process

The Torrance Desalter Extension pumps water from the 650,000 acre-feet of salty, undrinkable water lying in the Silverado Aquifer in the South Bay. It converts brackish water into drinking water. It was opened up by The Water Replenishment District of Southern California (WRD) and is a new kind of water treatment plant that takes salty water trapped in the aquifer and removes the salt and sediments and pipes cleaned up water into homes (reservoirs, etc).

Historical Impact

Los Angeles County has relied on outside sources to meet their water needs because the population increase and infrastructure expansion have outgrown the water supply abundances in the county. The Torrance Desalter extension project will help alleviate drought impacts and assist local public agencies to meet long-term water supply needs, protection of water quality, and augment/restore environmental conditions. The project objective is to create a new local water source in Southern California and improve local water supply reliability. It will reduce reliance on imported water which currently makes up 93% of source water for Torrance Municipal Water. The project will desalinate local groundwater at twice the current rate and, over time, will help remediate a saline plume that contaminated the Silverado Aquifer underlying Torrance. Torrance is aiming to be 100% self sustainable in water in the future by continuing to implement new wells.

Outlook

“This will produce, when it’s completed, about a quarter of our water supply,” said Public Works Director Rob Beste, who added that the expansion is just one component of a larger project. “We are looking to (eventually) produce 60 to 80 percent of the potable water we use locally in the city of Torrance.”