7/20/22 Update (Caller Times): State regulators seek contested case hearing on port’s proposed La Quinta desal permit or read the PDF version

Overview

The Port of Corpus Christi is proposing a desalination facility to be constructed just outside the Bayridge subdivision in Portland.  The intake pipeline will run from there to a location off the shores of Portland (see Figure 1).  The Port is having a heck of a time figuring out what to do with the discharge from the facility, so that is on hold.  But they think they have it all together for their intake.

Figure 1: Location of Intake Structure for Port’s Desal Plant on La Quinta Channel

Because the Channel is so shallow there, they will dredge a deeper hole to locate their pipe and draw 90.5 million gallons of water per day at a rate of 62,890 gallons per minute.  They are drawing 90 million a day to provide 30 million gallons of freshwater FOR NEW INDUSTRY.  That’s in their application and in the Draft Permit (see Figure 2).  It is NOT for municipal use.  And, the electrical power needed to operate is HUGE. 

Figure 2: Port’s application showing desal plant is for “new industrial development”

The local Economic Development Corporation has several properties, including the Port’s, that they are marketing for these new heavy industries; industries that require vast amounts of water to operate.  At risk in this intake process is aquatic life that are subject to entrapment, impingement on the screens, and entrainment as dead organisms and sludge in the system.  TCEQ has no real rules on impingement and entrainment; requiring the Port to only use reasonable measures to protect aquatic life.  The impacts to the aquatic life in our bay and the shorebirds that rely on them, to our shoreline, and to our quality of life are clear; and the new industries? Take a look at the photo of properties being marketed (see Figure 3)!

Figure 3: Corpus Christi Regional Economic Development Corporation (CCREDC) Planned Industry Locations

Below are suggested comments and links to relevant documents, including the Public Notice for the Meeting that has instructions on how to register. 

Come one, come, all. We don’t need to risk our bay for new industrial growth. We have plenty in Nueces and San Patricio already!

What to Say in a Public Comment

(Public Meeting was 7/31/21)

Step 1 – Describe your relationship to the issue (e.g., how far away you live or work from proposed plant and how you use Corpus Christi Bay)

​Step 2 – State your opposition and request Contested Case Hearing

​Step 3 – Tell your story or state your reasons for opposing, such as (feel free to use your own words & express your own concerns):

  • Intake Fish Kill: Desal will harm fish and aquatic life on intake (through impingement and entrainment) with such a high volume of water sucked out of the Bay every day. This will impact fishing in Corpus Christi Bay, and also cause odors from decaying organisms near Portland.
  • Discharge Salinity: Desal will also harm fish and aquatic life on discharge when millions of gallons of salty brine are put back into the bay each day after the freshwater is sucked out. Increased salinity and lower oxygen levels will destroy fishing throughout Corpus Christi Bay.
  • Shallow Low-Turnover Bay System: Acccording to scientists from our state universities and agencies, intake and discharge from desal plants should ONLY occur offshore in the Gulf – not inside our sensitive bay systems. The Port is only pushing for baywater desal to save money for industries, while sacrificing our waters. They’re eager to build oil pipelines that run through our cities and countryside – why not build pipelines for transporting industrial water on- and off-shore instead of doing it in our shallow Bay?
  • Industrial Use: The purpose of baywater desal is for industry – not for the people. The Port needs to show availability of huge amounts of water in order to entice more petrochemical industries here, like Exxon-SABIC. Such plants require huge amounts of water for cooling and they use a lot of energy.
  • Costs: The Port plans to get the permit, in its name, so it can qualify for low-interest public loans through the State’s Water Board – without identifying the industries that will actual use the water. Why aren’t they telling us who they plan to bring here? Why aren’t industries paying for the plant? Will taxpayers also be paying to operate it? How much is that going to cost?
  • Electric Grid: Having more high-energy using industries here will cause more pollution and more stress on our energy grid, which couldn’t even take care of Texans during last February’s cold snap and energy outage. Industries that need huge amounts of freshwater for cooling shouldn’t locate in Texas where it’s hot and dry in the first place!
  • Waste Water: Salty brine discharge will mix in with other waste water from the industries in La Quinta Channel. This can’t be good for the fish – or for people! If the fish die, then the birds we love to watch will also die or leave the area.
  • Toxic Remediation: The Port is exploring other options for handling brine discharge, such as using it to remediate the toxic Alcoa Copano Mud Beds at the former Sherwin Allumina plant site (see contract for the study). This sounds dangerous in the event of overflow into the Bay. Will the Port be talking with the public about these other options and impacts – especially on nearby communities like Portland, Gregory, and Ingleside on the Bay?
  • Health: Those who use the bay for fishing or recreation may suffer health consequences from the chemicals used in the desalination process, including pre-treatment.
  • Commercial Fishing & Shrimping: For those who fish or shrimp commercially, they will lose their source of income when aquatic life in La Quinta Channel and Corpus Christi Bay is destroyed by this desal plant.
  • Theft: Doesn’t diverting public water from Corpus Christi Bay (which connects to the Gulf of Mexico) to support private industry amount to stealing from taxpayers – both in the state of Texas and the nation?
  • Temperature: Since Texas is already drought-prone and gets very hot, why is the Port of Corpus Christi enticing such thirsty high-energy-enticing industries to come here in the first place? Shouldn’t they go where it’s cooler and where there’s more water?
  • Other: There are many other questions and concerns. Feel free to share your own!

Relevant Documents

Our Scientists Say: “No Desal in the Bay”!

Marine Seawater Desalination Diversion and Discharge Zones Report: TPWD & GLO

Harte Research Institute: A Statement on Our Desalination Science : TAMUCC

Intake Permit #WRPERM 13630

Discharge Permit #WQ0005254000

  • Public Notice – posted 1/15/20
  • Draft Permit – pending decision by TCEQ
  • Application – submitted 1/22/20
  • Review Submitted Comments for TCEQ ID# “WQ0005254000” (be sure to check “include all Correspondence”)