Water stress now affects nearly 4 billion people, especially in coastal areas where the demand for freshwater far exceeds supply. Seawater desalination seems like an obvious answer. Yet this technological solution raises major ecological, energy-related, and social concerns.
1. the global desalination boom
With nearly 20,000 operational plants and a market valued at over €35 billion, desalination is experiencing exponential growth. The most widely used technology is reverse osmosis, which filters seawater through a semi-permeable membrane. But this dominant method has several limitations that hinder its sustainability.
2. reverse osmosis: a double ecological and economic trap
The discharge of hypersaline and often toxic brine directly into the sea disrupts local ecosystems.
This technique is extremely energy-intensive, worsening the carbon footprint of the facilities.
Moreover, the membranes used are often expensive and imported, creating a problematic industrial dependency.
3. cascading impacts on ecosystems and communities
Local acidification of coastal waters and the concentration of pollutants directly threaten seagrass meadows and benthic fauna, both essential to biodiversity.
Desalination remains a technology primarily accessible to wealthier regions, widening the water and social divide between territories.
4. what are the alternatives for sustainable desalination?
Seawards is committed to low-impact solutions that combine low energy consumption with reduced environmental impacts.
Using renewable energy, promoting circular valorization of by-products, and implementing decentralized models enable more respectful resource management.
Involving users and local stakeholders in the governance of desalination is key to ensuring technologies truly meet local needs and are socially accepted.
Desalinating seawater is essential in the face of the water crisis—provided we rethink the methods. The future lies in low-impact, regenerative, and decentralized technologies. Seawards is working to turn this challenge into a sustainable opportunity, through innovation that serves both local communities and the planet.
