Harbor Island Seawater Desalination Facility Completes Federal Permitting
Contact Information
Permitting Council Press Office (media@permitting.gov)
WASHINGTON (September 18, 2025) – The Federal Permitting Improvement Steering Council (Permitting Council) is pleased to announce that the Harbor Island Seawater Desalination Facility Project completed federal permitting, reaching this critical benchmark two months ahead of schedule. The project is anticipated to provide up to 100 million gallons of drinking water per day for use by residents on the Gulf coast of Texas.
“I am excited to share that under the Trump Administration, the Harbor Island Seawater Desalination Facility was not only added to the Permitting Dashboard as a covered project but has successfully completed the federal permitting process two months earlier than initially expected,” said Emily Domenech, Permitting Council Executive Director. “This project demonstrates the capability of the FAST-41 program to advance key infrastructure projects benefiting communities in the Gulf of America and across the nation.”
Located near Port Aransas in Nueces County, Texas, the Harbor Island Seawater Desalination Facility project will provide up to 100 million gallons per day of drinkable water produced through reverse osmosis processing. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Galveston District led federal permitting for this Port of Corpus Christi Authority sponsored project.
Learn more about the Harbor Island Seawater Desalination Facility project on the Federal Permitting Dashboard. Learn more about the Permitting Council at permitting.gov.
About the Permitting Council and FAST-41
Established in 2015 by Title 41 of the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation Act (FAST-41), the Federal Permitting Improvement Steering Council (Permitting Council) is a federal agency charged with improving the transparency and predictability of the federal environmental review and authorization process for certain critical infrastructure projects. The Permitting Council is composed of the Permitting Council Executive Director, who serves as the Council Chair; 13 federal agency Council members; and the Chair of the White House Council on Environmental Quality and the Director of the Office of Management and Budget. The Office of the Executive Director coordinates federal environmental reviews and authorizations for projects that seek and qualify for FAST-41 coverage, which are in turn entitled to comprehensive permitting timetables and transparent, collaborative management of those timetables on the Federal Permitting Dashboard.
Learn more about the Permitting Council at permitting.gov.
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Last Updated: Thursday, September 18, 2025