Could we, in theory, use something like CRISPR to give a new baby replacement super-kidneys (or whatever organ it is that makes drinking saltwater be a bad time)? It seems like if we cracked that, we’d be set as a species.

Thanks for your time.

  • @alvvayson
    link
    English
    41 year ago

    Good point. Another reason to favor desalination.

    • Spzi
      link
      fedilink
      English
      21 year ago

      It’s a good point, but desalination has the same issue. Whenever you use seawater to produce something with almost no salt in it (be it desalinated water or crops), that means the salt has to go somewhere else. Probably in concentrated form.

      Desalination may not salt the earth, but brine can create dead zones in the water. There are solutions like diluting it, and there are cases of operators who don’t care. Either way, salt is an issue if you use salt water. Has to go somewhere.

      • @Buddahriffic
        link
        English
        21 year ago

        Diluting it is just undoing the desalination on the water used to dilute it.

        • Spzi
          link
          fedilink
          English
          81 year ago

          There are better ways to do this. Examples:

          1. Desalination plant provides town with fresh water
          2. Town’s waste water is treated before going back into the ocean
          3. Brine gets diluted into that treated stream

          In theory, this could give and take the same amount of salt water to and from the ocean, while still providing desalinated water for use.

          Another way to dilute brine is to add it to the ocean in small bits in multiple locations, so neither location exceeds a certain salt concentration.