Attempting Zero Liquid Discharge from a Challenging Water Source using Membrane Based Processes

The United States constructed the San Luis Unit to provide irrigation in central California with the 1960 San Luis Act. Subsequent court orders mandated that agricultural drainage service be provided to the farms that were supplied irrigation under the San Luis Act. The impacts to waterfowl and other aquatic species that manifested in 1985 at Kesterson Reservoir halted construction of “out-of-valley” drainage. Reclamation began construction of the San Luis Demonstration Plant (SLDP) to determine the best “in-valley” solution to agricultural drainage, with the water district associated with the SLDP preferring implementation of alternative technologies capable of near zero liquid discharge.