Desalination

Desalination refers to any of several processes that take away the excess salt and other minerals from water in order to obtain fresh water fit for animal consumption or irrigation, and if almost all of the salt is removed, for human consumption, sometimes producing table salt as a by-product. Desalination of brackish water is previously commonplace in the U.S., where it is used to meet treaty obligations for river water
entering Mexico. Indeed, desalination has spread into use in over a hundred countries, with Saudi Arabia accounting for about 24% of total world capacity. Kuwait built the world's first large-scale desalination plant in the 1960s. Kuwait's energy reserves are so great that Kuwait is unique in using desalinated water for agriculture. The world's largest desalination plant is in Ashkelon, Israel. It began in use on August 4, 2005, and it is capable of producing 100 million cubic meters of water per year.