BROWNSVILLE, Texas - The City of Brownsville’s big desalination project, which will cost around $250 million, should be completed by 2030, says Mayor John Cowen, Jr.
The Rio Grande Guardian interviewed Mayor Cowen and Congressman Vicente Gonzalez about the project at a recent press conference held to announce more funding for Brownsville’s Resaca Restoration project. Cowen said Gonzalez is playing his part to get the funding.
“We're doing everything that we need to do to make sure we're eligible for this funding. So, we have all the studies (completed) that that are required.” Cowen said, referring to money for desalination.
“There are different phases to this project. We want to first optimize our plant, right? We want to go from 7.5 million gallons a day to ten million gallons a day. And then we want to double the size of the plant, right? So, all in all, it's about $250 million project, so we're asking for tranches of funding to get us there.”
Asked when the Brownsville desalination project will be operating at ten million gallons a day, Cowen said:
“I think in the next couple of years. All in all, the way this timeline is set up, the total project should be done by 2030.”
Asked why the project is important, Cowen said: “We get 70 percent of our water locally from the (Rio Grande) river. We're fortunate to have a desal plant. The rest of the (Rio Grande) Valley doesn't have that type of resource. We want to make sure we're sustainable as we grow. As we all know, Brownsville is a growing community, and not only on the residential side, but also industrial and commercial side.”
Cowen said he supports big ocean desalination projects currently under discussion. “That might service more the commercial, industrial side,” he said.
Gonzalez said he is working to push through the House appropriations committee projects like the one to purify brackish water in Brownsville.
“We're also looking for potential resources for desalination, which is over a billion-dollar project,” he said, referencing the work the City of Corpus Christi is doing.
“That’s a little bit down the road (for the Rio Grande Valley), but it's something that we need to consistently be looking at and be working towards. To assure that we reach the day when we don't have a water shortage, and we never will have a water shortage, because we have systems in place that will assure that we have the purified water that we need,” Gonzalez said.
“To assure our agriculture, our farmers, that they have water resources, that our cities have the resources. Then we can continue to grow in population, and our economy can continue to grow with sustainability, with the assurance that we have water for everyone.”
Editor's Note: Here is a video recording of the Guardian's interview with Mayor Cowen about desalination:
Editor's Note: Here are the remarks Congressman Gonzalez made from the podium in answer to a Rio Grande Guardian question about desalination:
