On June 15th, 2017 the Sweetwater Authority leaders and local officials gathered to dedicate the expansion of the Richard A. Reynolds Groundwater Desalination Facility. The facility is designed to be a drought-proof method of supplying water to the residents of San Diego County. The $42 million expansion project doubled the previous production capacity of the plant to 10 million gallons per day. This event consisted of local news crews, fancy hors-d’oeuvres, and speeches from the various entities that played a part in the expansion project. Overall, every one of the speeches had a common theme of collaboration and sustainability. The keynote speaker was the wife of the late Richard A. Reynolds who spoke on behalf of her husband and the vision he had for the facility. She was also granted the honor of cutting the ribbon. A plaque was also revealed rededicating the facility that lists the involved contributors with EA listed as one of the contractors.
After the ribbon cutting, the doors to the facility were opened to give attendees an opportunity to walk through the process room. Informational plaques were posted throughout the room that described the different process areas and the work that was involved. Overall, this was a great opportunity for everyone; including EA employees; to see the accomplishments after nearly 2 years of work. For details on the project and the work performed by EA, see the Desal Expansion project case study.