Advances in reverse osmosis membrane technology are convincing more and more cities to invest in cleaning their own used water instead of piping it in from far-off reservoirs.
"A non-profit organization called the Affordable Desalination Collaboration formed in the state of California as a public/private venture that has funding from some of the municipalities like Orange County, West Basin, and the city of Santa Cruz. It also has funding from the state of California's Department of Water Resources, the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, and then some of the industrial companies."
"For example, when the Santa Barbara seawater R.O. system was built in the early 90s, it cost about four times what it currently costs to desalt seawater-seawater desalting costs only 25 percent of what it did just 15 years ago. So, we found out very quickly that the technology has improved and is more energy efficient..."
"...osmotic pressure represents a potential source of energy. That was postulated in the 1970s by the originators of the reverse osmosis concept but at that time the technology didn't exist to capture that osmotic pressure and turn it into power. Today, because of technological improvements, it is conceivable that we will be able to capture the osmotic pressure from seawater and make it a source of power."
FULL STORY: Reverse Osmosis and Toray Membrane USA: Can Desalination Finally Solve Water Scarcity?
Depopulation Patterns Get Weird
A recent ranking of “declining” cities heavily features some of the most expensive cities in the country — including New York City and a half-dozen in the San Francisco Bay Area.
California Exodus: Population Drops Below 39 Million
Never mind the 40 million that demographers predicted the Golden State would reach by 2018. The state's population dipped below 39 million to 38.965 million last July, according to Census data released in March, the lowest since 2015.
Pennsylvania Mall Conversion Bill Passes House
If passed, the bill would promote the adaptive reuse of defunct commercial buildings.
Google Maps Introduces New Transit, EV Features
It will now be easier to find electric car charging stations and transit options.
Ohio Lawmakers Propose Incentivizing Housing Production
A proposed bill would take a carrot approach to stimulating housing production through a grant program that would reward cities that implement pro-housing policies.
Chicago Awarded $2M Reconnecting Communities Grant
Community advocates say the city’s plan may not do enough to reverse the negative impacts of a major expressway.
City of Costa Mesa
Licking County
Barrett Planning Group LLC
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
Mpact Transit + Community
HUD's Office of Policy Development and Research
City of Universal City TX
ULI Northwest Arkansas
Town of Zionsville
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
