Why not just build a desalination plant and purify sea water?

Ocean or seawater desalination is an option. However, creating pure water from saltwater comes at a price, and the biggest cost is in terms of energy and equipment. It requires significant energy to remove the salt from the ocean water, and there is much more salt to be removed than required to purify recycled water for potable reuse, meaning more equipment to filter out that salt. While potable reuse is anticipated to cost approximately $1,600 to produce an acre-foot of water, desalination can cost in excess of $2,500 to $3,000 an acre-foot, depending on the ultimate size of the full-scale treatment plant and distribution piping.

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1. Why is Ventura Water looking for new sources of drinking water?
2. Are there other ways to reuse the water that could benefit water supply?
3. Can conservation meet our needs without this source of supply?
4. What is wastewater and where does it go in Ventura?
5. What does “potable” mean, and what is potable reuse?
6. What is water purification?
7. Why not just build a desalination plant and purify sea water?
8. Who regulates recycled water? What laws and regulations have to be met?