Protect Corpus Christi Bay From Desalination

The City and Port of Corpus Christi are proposing to build up to four desalination plants that will pump hundreds of millions of gallons of water out of Corpus Christi Bay every day and discharge the concentrated brine back into the bay. The cumulative impacts from these plants will be added to that of the existing desalination plant inside the Port's Inner Harbor. With the barrier islands separating Corpus Christi Bay from the Gulf, the bay is mostly enclosed and it takes about 1.5 years for water inside it to be exchanged, meaning that there will be little opportunity for the brine discharge to blend with a fresh supply of water.

The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) has not considered the possible cumulative impacts from multiple desalination plants inside the bay when reviewing the water rights and discharge permit applications for the plants, and their general approach and oversight of the permitting process has been called into question by officials at the EPA. People ranging from local residents to experienced marine biologists have expressed concerns about a variety of issues surrounding the proposed plants, including the high costs to construct and operate them, environmental justice issues and potential harm to fish, birds and other animals living in and around the bay. Scientists at Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi are concerned about the possible negative effects that multiple brine discharges may have on fish, shrimp and crab larvae, dolphins, bottom dwelling organisms and other aquatic life.

The Surfrider Foundation Texas Coastal Bend Chapter's position is that water conservation and reuse should be the first alternatives considered by the City of Corpus Christi or any other water providers when evaluating additional sources of water for the community and industry. After that, desalination of brackish groundwater and reuse of the salt byproduct or injection of the brine into a groundwater well should be the second option. If the first two options have been exhausted and desalination of bay or Gulf waters is to be undertaken, all intakes and brine discharge outfalls must be located offshore in the Gulf of Mexico. This is supported by the Texas Parks & Wildlife Department, the Texas General Land Office and Dr. Larry McKinney, Chair for Gulf Strategies at the Harte Research Institute for Gulf of Mexico Studies. The facilities must also use the best available technology and appropriate facilities siting so as to minimize the impacts of impingement and entrainment at their intakes, and to avoid impacts to public beach access and/or the need for coastal armoring. Finally, desalination facilities must utilize renewable energy sources such as wind and solar power rather than energy sources that contribute to climate change.