© 2014 Groundwater Desalination Molly Cagle

SB Groundwater regulation is best accomplished through local or regional districts that operate in keeping with suitable statewide criteria, consistent with local political considerations. The state encourages the formation and operation of groundwater conservation districts to address significant groundwater quantity or quality problems.

History of GCDs High Plains Underground Water Conservation District No GCDs formed Senate Bill 1 99 GCDs (and counting)

January 2014

Raw Water Supply Concentrate Disposal Water Distribution Cooling Water Treatment Process Ground Water ENERGY Water and Energy Courtesy of GBRA Integrated Water & Power Project

Energy Penalty of Treatment Courtesy of Mike Nasi, Jackson Walker LLP

Electricity Demands by Sector Courtesy of Mike Nasi, Jackson Walker LLP

If the Cloud Were A Country... Courtesy of Mike Nasi, Jackson Walker LLP

In Terms We Can All Understand Courtesy of Mike Nasi, Jackson Walker LLP

Projected Water Needs in Texas Source: TWDB 2012 State Water Plan

Consider All Options

Comparing Water Management Strategies Source: Poseidon Water

Advantages of Desal  Reliable, drought-proof, clean and safe source of water  Competitively priced in areas lacking sufficient local fresh water supply  Limited incremental land needs, unlike other alternative water sources  Alleviates natural tension between various constituencies competing for a dwindling water supply  Ample opportunities for Public-Private Partnerships with water agencies Courtesy of Poseidon Water

Challenges of Desal  Difficulty obtaining permits  Difficulty protecting water rights  Difficulty developing new supplies  Discrepancy of location of supply v. demand  Endangered Species  Costs  Public perception and controversy  Litigation Courtesy of GBRA

A Challenge for Desal: FPL Farming  FPL Farming v. Environmental Processing Systems  1996: EPS receives UIC permit  FPL settled w/EPS instead of contested case  1999: EPS applies for increased injection rate amendment  FPL challenges in contested case  ALJ issues PFD: waste plume will migrate 3,021 ft in 10 years…but no harm shown  FPL appeals, affirmed by district and appeals courts  Courts left open question of damages if plume appears below FPL's property

FPL Farming  FPL files tort lawsuit  Trespass  Nuisance  Unjust enrichment  TX Supreme Court holds EPS's UIC permit does not insulate EPS from potential tort liability.  Case remanded, but expressly did not resolve whether subsurface wastewater migration can be a trespass  Remand to appeals court for merits

FPL Farming  Appeals court  Wastewater migration can be actionable trespass  But burden of proof was in error; EPS must prove consent as affirmative defense  REMANDED for new trial  EPS appeals remand to TX Supreme Court  Oral arguments held January 7, 2014  Amicus briefs filed  Issues  Consent (smaller issue)  Trespass

FPL Farming  Implications of FPL Farming  Does the "right to exclude" apply to subsurface trespass?  Need to prove harm?  Permitting scheme  Property rights in groundwater  Is brackish/briny water different?  Consequences for Class I waste disposal wells  Consequences for Class II saltwater injection wells  Consequences for groundwater desal?

How many people use desal?  12,500 desal plants worldwide, 120 countries  4 billion gallons per day  Where is desal?  Middle East - 60% of worldwide capacity  Desal is >70% of regional water supply  United States plants  California  Florida  Texas  Australia, Singapore, UK, Spain, Caribbean nations Source: TWDB; USGS

Conservation is Not Enough  "Seawater and brackish groundwater desalination are one of many tools in the State’s long-term water supply toolbox."  Texas Water Development Board  "Sure, we're trying to conserve, but we've got to do even more with less, and conservation's not enough. It's time to bring new technology to the water's edge and turn previously unusable resources into some crystal-clear solutions."  Texas Water Report: Going Deeper for the Solution (Texas Comptroller, 2014)