Hours from the California coast, surfers are hoping one of the next spots where they can catch a wave is in the desert.
At least four large surf lagoons are proposed for the region around Palm Springs, which is more commonly known for art festivals, mountain hikes and golf, and has no natural waves in sight.
But some environmentalists and residents say it isn’t water-wise to build large resorts in one of the driest spots in California during one of its driest periods in recent memory. They contend water in the massive surf pools will evaporate quickly in the desert heat, wasting a precious resource, while proponents argue the waves will boost tourism, ramp up recreation and use less water than ever-popular golf courses.
“Is that their best use of the limited water resources in these climate-driven drought times, is golf courses and surf spots?” said Conner Everts, executive director of the Southern California Watershed Alliance. “It’s like a fantasy. It’s like Dubai.”
California is going through a relentless drought, worsened by climate change, and its nearly 40 million residents have faced repeated calls in recent years to conserve water. The greater Palm Springs area sits atop a groundwater aquifer but receives remarkably little rainfall and relies on water from the State Water Project, which is running below capacity, and the Colorado River, a critical U.S. water supplier that is overtaxed.
Local water district officials say there’s enough water in a 20-year plan to support the new wave pools and resorts.
The proposals, which range from private, luxury communities to a public wave park, come as surfing soars in popularity in the United States. It became an Olympic sport last year, and industry experts forecast its continued growth as travel recovers following pandemic shutdowns and amid a rise in inland surf parks, according to San Jose-California-based Global Industry Analysts Inc.
Cheyne Magnusson, a pro surfer who is revamping a Palm Springs water park and adding a wave pool, is counting on that. He said the area is ideal because so many die-hard surfers live within driving distance and waves can be unreliable at the beach. It’s also a popular vacation spot, he said, and beginners might want to try surfing in a safe environment.
“A lot of people have a day off today, and they really want to go surfing. I can guarantee they are going to get a good wave, and they’re going to get a lot of them,” said Magnusson, who helped develop a wave park in landlocked Waco, Texas.
Magnusson’s project is under construction, and two others are approved. In nearby La Quinta, a proposed 400-acre development around a half-mile-long wave basin faces opposition from homeowners who moved to the area in search of a quiet retirement community.
They say the proposed Coral Mountain development will draw noisy surf festivals and ruin stargazing with its glaring lights. And they’re concerned the pool’s anticipated annual use of 120 acre-feet of water — in addition to the water used in the development’s 600 homes, hotel and retail outlets — will deplete community water supplies.
In 2016, one acre-foot was enough water for between three and four California households for a year, according to the nonprofit Water Education Foundation.
“With the evaporation and the wind and everything that is going to happen,” said Alena Callimanis, a member of the group La Quinta Residents for Responsible Development, “the optics of this are just crazy.”
