It sounds like they’re not quite using fresh water, but waste water. I presume it’s been treated, but even if it’s not 100% back to potable, if this also helps solve the problem of what to do with the brine after desalination, I think it’s a win all around.
Using it to run desalination is confusing.
I created a bucket of fresh water using nothing but sea water, a membrane, and a bucket of fresh water.
Fresh water doesn’t mean drinkable water, it just means not salt water. The desalination plant produces drinkable water.
It sounds like they’re not quite using fresh water, but waste water. I presume it’s been treated, but even if it’s not 100% back to potable, if this also helps solve the problem of what to do with the brine after desalination, I think it’s a win all around.