Numerical Assessment of Environmental Impact of Brine Discharge from a Desalination Plant on Coastal Water

In North China, water shortage imposes constraint on economic and social development. Seawater desalination provides an effective approach to relieve this disadvantage, while this industry also accompanies with adverse environmental effects. To study the environmental impact of brine discharge from a desalination plant at the planning stage on the west coastal line of the Bohai Bay, the salinity distributions are predicted by using numerical simulation. Monthly variations of salinity distributions are given and the impacted areas are calculated. The results show that the mean area with salinity rising of 1 and 2 are about 40 and 10 square kilometers, respectively. The maximum impact areas are about 80 and 35 square kilometers respectively, which will take place in spring. The salinity variation at the inlet is predicted, which is fluctuated with the tidal oscillations, and the maximum salinity level is below 35 in this position.