State regulators on Thursday ruled unanimously that the Monterey Peninsula will need more water by 2050 than all current available sources can supply, including the new expansion of Pure Water Monterey that will be coming online this year. As a result, commissioners believe that water deficit will need to be filled with California American Water Co.’s desalination project. It was not a surprise for many, since administrative law judges Jack Chang and Robert Haga at the California Public Utilities Commission in May issued a proposed decision that adopted most of Cal Am’s estimates on water supply and demand by the year 2050. 

Related articles:

• Monterey County Weekly (Seaside, Calif.): The CPUC approves current water supply and future demand, clearing the way for desal plant
• KSBW (Salinas, Calif.): Monterey Peninsula desalination plant approved amid public debate