156th  meeting of The Lyncean Group of San Diego  – 11:00 am, Tuesday, 6 October 2026

Location: Southwestern Yacht Club
2702 Qualtrough Street, San Diego, CA 92106 (Point Loma) 

Speaker: Mr. Jeremy Crutchfield, P.E., Water Resources Manager, San Diego County Water Authority (SDCWA)

Speaker bio: Jeremy Crutchfield is a licensed civil engineer with more than twenty-five years of experience planning, designing and constructing water infrastructure projects. As a Water Resources Manager at the San Diego County Water Authority, he oversees the facility and supply planning functions as well as administration of the Carlsbad Desalination Plant Water Purchase Agreement.

Jeremy earned his Civil Engineering degree from the University of Arizona and a master’s degree from Loyola Marymount University.

Topic:   The Role of Seawater Desalination for Water Supply Reliability in the San Diego Region and Entire Southwest

Abstract: In late 2015, the San Diego County Water Authority began receiving water from the Claude “Bud” Lewis Carlsbad Desalination Plant. The new drought-resilient supply couldn’t have come at a better time as the entire southwest was entrenched in a multi-year drought with mandated imported water cutbacks and supply allocations imposed by the state and the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, respectively. The Carlsbad Desal Plant and other water supply diversification strategies implemented by the Water Authority and its member agencies over the last 20+ years have resulted in the San Diego region securing a reliable supply of water now and into the future that can withstand drought and other water supply threats related to climate change, regulatory actions, and environmental pressures. This presentation will provide a look into what drove the Water Authority to develop the Carlsbad Desalination Plant, why a Public-Private-Partnership was chosen as the delivery mechanism, and how the plant turns seawater into high-quality drinking water. It will also cover how the Water Authority is marketing its resilient supply to other water agencies in the Southwest and the possible role of seawater desalination in addressing dire conditions on the Colorado River.

Invitations with further details will be e-mailed to Lyncean Group members about three weeks before the meeting.

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