11-35 



brackish water 1s unpotable and treatment costs to render 1t potable 

 are extremely high. The brackish estuarine water is also a poor 

 source for Industrial Drocess water. Here again a hinh degree of 

 purity is normally required in the process water and the cost of 

 removing the dissolved salts is prohibitive. 



Estuarine waters are used extensively, however, as a source of 

 industrial coolinn water. For this use the most important considera- 

 tions are the quantity and the ambient temperature. Water tempera- 

 tures are generally well below the maximum for economical cooling, 

 and since the ocean is connected to one side of the estuary, the 

 quantity is no problem. Cooling water is required by both the 

 manufacturing industry and electric power generation plants; the 

 greatest use is in the thermal electric plants. 



The distribution of cooling water use parallels population and 

 industrial development in the coastal counties, even though elec- 

 trical power can be transported economically over many miles. The 

 greatest concentrations of cooling water use are in the Middle 

 Atlantic and Pacific Southwest Regions; fortunately these regions 

 both have moderate water temperatures which make possible efficient 

 use of the available cooling water. 



There are, however, 47 nuclear power plants built or scheduled for 

 completion by 1976. All of these are in the megawatt range, with 

 a combined capacity of nearly 35,000 megawatts of electrical power. 



