FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: August 8, 2007
CONTACT: Geoff Embler or Matt Mackowiak
Sen. Hutchison, EPA Administrator Johnson Attend El Paso Desalination Plant Ribbon Cutting
Kay Bailey Hutchison Desalination Plant to be the Largest inland Desalination Plant in the World
WASHINGTON -- Texas senior ‘Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison (R–TX) and Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Stephen Johnson today attended a ribbon cutting for the new Kay Bailey Hutchison Desalination Plant in El Paso.
This new plant is part of an aggressive, 50-year conservation plan in response to severe droughts and a diminishing underground supply. The potable water produced will never be affected by drought, for an area that typically receives nine inches of rain annually.
“In El Paso and the surrounding areas, residents, businesses, and our local service members rely on a safe water supply, and when that supply is threatened, it can have devastating effects,” said Sen. Hutchison. “I worked very closely with Congressman Reyes, the Department of Defense, and El Paso community leaders to secure a total of $29 million in federal funding to help construct this plant. Today, just two years after I was here for the groundbreaking, we are cutting the ribbon on the largest inland desalination plant in the world and the largest desalination plant of any kind in the United States. I am honored and humbled that this community has chosen to name this plant after me. I want to sincerely thank everyone involved for helping make this plant become a reality.”
“Our nation’s aging water infrastructure cannot remain, ‘Out of sight, out of mind.’ Thankfully, under the leadership of El Paso Water Utilities and Fort Bliss, the residents of the Paso del Norte area will continue to enjoy the benefits of a clean, reliable water system for generations to come,” said EPA Administrator Stephen L. Johnson. “By tapping into previously unusable ground water, the Kay Bailey Hutchison Desalination Plant will improve the quality of life and the quality of the environment for families and businesses throughout the region.”
Also in attendance for the event were Brig. Gen. Robert P. Lennox, Commanding General of Fort Bliss, Mayor John Cook of El Paso, U.S. Rep. Silvestre Reyes (D-TX), and officials from the Water Utilities Board, the El Paso International Airport, the Catholic Diocese of El Paso, and the Water Development Board.
“This project is a true service to the community, providing a new reliable water source which will improve the health, economy and quality of life for the area,” said Sen. Hutchison.
Sen. Hutchison is a member of the Senate Republican Leadership as Chairman of the Republican Policy Committee and is a senior member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, which funded this project at the federal level.
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