New water intake and discharge facilities in and adjacent to Agua Hedionda Lagoon are now complete at the Claude “Bud” Lewis Carlsbad Desalination Plant in Carlsbad. (San Diego County Water Authority photo)
The Claude “Bud” Lewis Carlsbad Desalination Plant has completed a $286 million upgrade to its seawater intake and discharge system, a state-mandated project designed to protect marine life while maintaining the facility’s water production capacity, the San Diego County Water Authority announced Tuesday, Oct. 28.
The work was finished on schedule and $29 million under budget, according to a Water Authority news release.
The project, located in and around Agua Hedionda Lagoon, was required by the California Ocean Plan Amendment to further reduce the environmental impacts of seawater intake and brine discharge. It included new water intake and outflow structures that use fine-mesh dual-flow screens to prevent small organisms from being drawn into the system.
Funding for the upgrades benefited from $19 million in federal grants and more than $10 million in construction cost savings, the Water Authority stated. The total came in below the $286 million budget established when the project began, with remaining funds left in the account set up for potential unforeseen costs.
“This project does three vital things — it protects our drought-proof water supply, it protects the environment, and it protects ratepayers,” Water Authority Board Chair Nick Serrano said in the news release. “Every time we achieve savings like this, we’re living up to our responsibility to deliver safe, reliable water in the most cost-effective way possible for San Diegans.”
The Carlsbad plant, which began operations in 2015, produces up to 50 million gallons of drinking water each day — enough to meet about 10% of San Diego County’s total demand. Operated by Poseidon Water under a long-term agreement with the Water Authority, it remains the largest seawater desalination facility in the United States.
The project was recognized this week by Engineering News-Record West as the top water and environmental project in its annual Best Projects awards. The publication noted the facility’s on-time completion, adherence to budget, and environmental improvements through redesigned intake and discharge systems.
According to the Water Authority, the savings from the project will help lower the cost of desalinated water beginning in July 2026. Since its completion in December 2015, the plant has produced more than 132 billion gallons of water and buffered San Diego County against water-use cutbacks during recent droughts.
The San Diego Regional Water Quality Control Board and other state agencies continue to monitor the Carlsbad facility to ensure compliance with California’s environmental standards for desalination projects.
This report was written using artificial intelligence, then edited and fact-checked against source material.
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