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Cambria desalt plant plan hits snag

December 16, 2011

Current plans for a desalination plant to serve the Cambria area were waylaid Thursday by the California Coastal Commission when the panel ruled Santa Rosa Creek is off limits for intake and outfall facilities.

Specifically, the commission agreed unanimously that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ planned testing of soil and water at the creek mouth would be “inconsistent” with state coastal regulations. The proposed desalt plant would be located inland, requiring the use of pipelines and pump facilities to deliver sea water and effluent to and from the plant.

Officials of the commission said the Corps could defer to the decision, or proceed as planned and risk a lawsuit.

Despite critical water supply and quality issues, the desalt plant concept in Cambria has been controversial, partly because of a thick layer of state and local regulations intended to protect the coastline.


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Global warming will handle all our water supply needs. If global warming proves to be incorrect, then at least the planet is not going to destroy us. Win win, save your money.


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Desalination is energy intensive and creates an incredible amount of unusable solid waste. For those reasons alone, desal creates more problems than it resolves. If Cambria wants more water, they should go greener. Grey water re-use is one way.


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OK…what do you people not get about “critical water supply and quality issues’….that has nothing to do with frogs or environmentalist. It means there is no water for every person that would like to build and live at the beach. It is an overpopulation issue. Too many people want the same thing, and no one wants to pay the real price to do it. You want to live at the beach instead of Corona or Fresno, well guess what…it is going to cost you. BIG. Why? Because, you can’t drink salt water, just like you can’t eat dirt. But we still re-direct water in this state dictated by people egotistcial sense of ‘mine, mine,mine’.

I, for one, am glad this has happened. I am sick of seeing the coastline destroyed because one more person from L.A. needs to have his McMansion. There are plenty of places to rent, time share, own, or stay for the weekend.

Besides, there are easier options for water. There is a membrane developed in 2005 that can extract water from air with high humidity or fog. It was in Newsweek, who hailed it as a revolution for water-critical areas. When the planners, and the movers & shakers of Cambria AND Cayucos were told about this, the response was….NO! If there is water, then everyone will come. No water, no people, no building…..and our little seaside communities stay that way. The cute little houses that dot our coastline are being torn down daily so 2 people can live in a 20,000 sq.ft.house for 5 years and move on to a retirement community in Phoenix. Meanwhile, in those 5 years, they moaned and groaned the politicians into changing a quaint, seaside community into an ugly, big-box store dominated, country club for expatriates of Los Angeles.


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Had me going, for a second, but you tipped your hand when you used “McMansion,” which is a nimbyism for any home larger than your own. I think you need to come to grips with yourself and admit that what you want to do is shut the door behind you.


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McMansion is a pretty common term land surveyors and land use planners use for ‘johnny come lately’ who moves here, claims to like the charm of this community, and then does everything they can to make this area like the area they left behind.

And it awfully presumptive of you to assume I have a small house, and claim that is my motive here. But to someone who has a background in water and building, it is pretty obvious we have an overpopulation problem, and no one wants to say so. More people, less water for resources. And, no, people are not resources. People, believe it or not, can be replaced. That is why this is ‘fire-at-will’ state.


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1) It’s a pejorative term. Don’t back-peddle when you get called on it.


2) I don’t care whether you have a small house or not. Nor what your background is, for that matter.


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There is no water problem in this area. There never has been a water problem. It’s always been political. I remember back in Dunin’s days when people were talking about desalination plants for SLO. It’s all about the $$$$$


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It is always about $$$$$.

Just like the Oceano Dunes. We know we are tearing down the ecosystem, we know those birds and other critters cannot stand us riding around on machines in a circle, over and over again, using up gas, and making horrible noise, but we want to keep doing it until it is all gone. Because humans are better. We are better than birds. We are better than fish. Why? Because the Bible says so? Really?

And the amount of people at the Oceano Dunes doesn’t make the air pollution problem worse. They make it better. Because they bring money to pay for what they destroy. It is just a free-for-all down there. and money is what makes it happen, not common sense.

I for one cannot wait to see what happens one day, when it all runs out. When people have to start actually exercising again, using their stocky legs, jiggly arms, and big fat butts. The obesity rates in Kern Co. will be cut in half.


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I am not necessarily in disagreement with you, especially with the last couple sentiments you express. But perhaps it’s better that we let them have the Oceano Dunes to do what they will with, as it is keeps them from spreading into places like Montana de Oro,


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What are the options for Cambria if they cannot proceed with a desal plant?


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This soltion to Cambria’s water problems has been investigated for decades and the coastal commission has denied it anywhere along the coast. Is this much needed project to bring reliable water to drought stricken Cambria going to go the way of the Los Osos sewer?


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So how about the Coastal Commission getting their priorities correct. I realize they would like the whole developed coast line bulldozed and returned to its “natural” state, but I think they are too late for that. We have a whole ocean full of water that can be processed to remove the minerals but can’t touch it. At times it makes me want to be a red-legged frog. I would have more rights.


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No, not it’s “natural” state….they’d like it returned to its “pre-european condition”. That’s the term that they use when the microphones are turned off.


Bear in mind that this latest edict from the Coastal Commission is about blocking testing.Nobody has said anything about building anything yet.


Of course the Corps could proceed and risk a lawsuit from the CC. Who would the benefactors be of a lawsuit? A battery of attorneys like Hawley, et. al and CC and Corps staff. Guess who would fund both sides of the lawsuit? Us!


Whatever happened to the notion the the Fed government trump the state?


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Just any state or the People’s Republic of California? California thinks it is bigger than the rest of the country, just look at our medical marijuana laws …..or our ADA restrictions ….. we are the most codified state in the union.


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I hope this state nullifies the federal government out of relevance, personally. You’re just getting played by the exact people you are annoyed by. They create the story of the water problem, threaten to stop development because of it, and then a team of politicians whose importance and wallets it will grow put forward an idea like this, which gets support from the conservatives/pro growth people precisely because it is even MORE liberal agencies that threaten to shut it down. That’s how they play conservatives with the water game.


It is not a water problem they need a solution to, it’s an anti growther problem they need a solution to.


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