Using Renewable Energy to Combat the Drought

FRESNO, Calif. (KMJ) — A $30 million solar-powered desalination plant is being built in the Panoche Water and Drainage District near Firebaugh.

“When the sun rises, we have, basically, a giant mirror, that concentrates the energy from the sun. So, just like a magnifying glass, we concentrate the energy, we generate heat, and we use the heat to evaporate fresh water. The dirty water comes in, it contacts steam we generate from solar energy, and we distill of fresh water, leaving all the salt behind.”

Aaron Mendell, founder of the San Francisco-based startup WaterFX, says his technology is a mix of the old and the new.

“Distillation, obviously, is one of the oldest processes; it’s been around for hundreds of years. Just like you would using it to make whiskey, or vodka, we’re using it to make fresh water. It’s a very basic process, but we’re running it with renewable energy.”

Up to 5,000 acre-feet of water a year is expected to be generated, enough to cover 10,000 homes, or 2,000 acres of cropland.