[jluxenberg]

Huh; so desalinated water costs between $0.001 to $0.008 depending on the cost of the power.

I pay about $0.0136 / gallon so almost 10x the cost of producing.

Seems like (for non-agricultural use) we will be able to afford desalination -- I guess the real issue will be agricultural uses which are predicated on free water.

[snakeyjake]

Making desalinated water is relatively cheap. You can do it with a clear tarp and sunlight. Desalination at scale is less cheap. Almost all water is cheap.

One (there are several) problem with desalination is that it often has to compete with free.

In many parts of North America the water is actually free. Like New York City-- their water falls from the sky in upstate NY, for free, into reservoirs that are not free to maintain to be distributed by colossal public works projects which are 100% not free.

Pumping water, desalinated or not, to your house is not free.

Whoever is charging you $0.0136/gal for water may indeed (especially if you don't live in an arid region with strange water rights laws) be charging you $0.0136/gal to pump water to your house and $0.0000/gal for the actual water.

If they switch to a desalinated source it is highly likely they will charge you $0.0136/gal + ≥$0.0010/gal = ≥$0.0146/gal.

Of course, if you live near a source of salt water you can cut out the middleman and, after massive up-front capital outlays, desalinate your own water for ≥$0.001/gal assuming you live long enough to recoup the cost of the initial expense.

[yardie]

Does that price include wastewater treatment? In our old home waste water was billed separately but the usage was based on your water meter. So if you poured 1000 gallons into the storm drain you were charged 1000gals of fresh water + 1000gals of sewage. The freshwater cost almost nothing but treatment is where the real costs came in.