It would be easy to dismiss the premise of a talk delivered yesterday at the 2008 Joint Meeting of The Geological Society of America, Soil Science Society of America, American Society of Agronomy, Crop Science Society of America, and Gulf Coast Association of Geological Societies, in Houston. But the audience seems serious enough.
Entitled "Taking the salt out of sea water" sound shopworn, but there's no doubting the need for additional supplies of fresh water in many areas. The UN estimates that, globally, 1.1 billion people lack access to sustainable, clean drinking water and that 1.6 million children die each year because of that lack of access. University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) geoscientist David Kreamer, noting that 37% of the world's population lives within 100 km of a coastline, proposes that mothballed naval ships, such as the decommissioned US aircraft carrier John F. Kennedy, be retrofitted to become mobile desalination plants. He terms it "practical." Sounds like it's anything but that, but at least the idea is being vetted by relevant scientists.
Medical News Today has the October 1 story.
Months of hard work were repaid today as CA Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger vetoed AB 2270 , a bill to remove procedural hurdles and make it easier for the state's water districts to ban ion-exchange water softeners. Schwarzenegger told the Legislature:
Increasing the use of recycled water in the state is an absolutely necessary activity to increase water supply reliability for the future of our growing state. Unfortunately, this bill also includes provisions that go too far in limiting residential use of water softeners.
I recognize that excess salinity in surface and ground water is a serious water quality problem in various regions throughout the state, including the Central Valley and southern California. However, current law already includes provisions that allow local agencies to regulate water softeners. The provisions of this bill create a system that could unduly limit choices for consumers and small water systems, with potentially little positive impact given the relatively limited contribution of water softeners to our salinity problems.
The Water Quality Association and Pacific WQA, with the active support of the salt industry and retailers, argued that the bill would deprive consumers of the means to protect their homes against the damage of hard water with little compensating environmental benefit.
Facing a midnight deadline, the Governor signed 81 bills and vetoed 58 as the budget-impasse-extended Legislature finally finished its 2008 session.
Well done. Thank you, Governor.
