OceanWell has announced the advancement of Water Farm 1 (WF1), the first subsea reverse osmosis desalination project in the U.S.
The project is in partnership with Las Virgenes Municipal Water District (LVMWD) and six California water agencies. The company forecasts WF1 will deliver up to 60 million gallons (MGD) of drinking water per day by 2030. It also offers a new model for a reliable water supply.
WF1 is approximately 4.5 miles off Malibu, CA, and a major leap forward in , “drought-resilient” water supply. Using natural hydrostatic pressure at depths of 400 meters (1,300 feet), each of OceanWell’s modular pods can harvest up to one million gallons of fresh water daily. Additionally, WF1 is said to decrease energy use by 40% while avoiding the brine discharge and disruption to marine life.
This announcement comes as California faces mounting water insecurity due to prolonged drought, declining runoff, and overreliance on fragile ecosystems.
Courtesy of OceanWell.