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<br />. <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />. ."C~' <br />.lJu.;; <br /> <br />because of the additional salt load from the aclded uses in the U~~er <br /> <br />Basin and salt picl~up from the increased runoff. <br /> <br />Development of geothermal energy resources located in Imperial <br />Valley holds promise of a potential sovrce for comparatively low cost <br />desalted water that could be used to reduce salinity of the Colorado <br />River water. However, there are many unknowns at this time. This <br />resource cannot be adequately judged until prototype wells are dug <br /> <br />and tested 2nd research is further along concerning other major issues. <br /> <br />Because of the increasing salinity of the Colorado River, the Lower <br /> <br /> <br />Basin cannot afford to wait on the possibility that a geothermal water <br /> <br /> <br />30urce will be developed. If it later becomes feasible, it can be <br /> <br /> <br />utilized in addition to other measures to control the river's salinity <br /> <br />and to provide additional water for all purposes. <br />Direct desalting of the river's flow has also been proposed as <br />a solution. However, the concentration of salts in the river, while <br />high to its users, is at a comparatively low level when considering <br />desalting plants. Any sucn plant would require the treatment of an <br />enormous volume of water with resultant huge costs. Greater feasi- <br />bility is likely to be realized where desalting is confined to <br /> <br />individual sources of water in the Colorado River Basin that have <br /> <br />unusually high concentrations of salts, as a much smaller volume of <br />water would have to be treated per ton of salts removed. <br /> <br />Salinity Control Proiects <br />The Hater Quality Office - Environmental ?rotection Agency, form- <br /> <br />erly called the Feder",.l Hater Quality Administration, has been SluJying <br />the Colorado r.iver salinity problem for a number of years through its <br /> <br />-9- <br />