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WASHINGTON, March 22, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- The International Desalination Association (IDA) today announced its plan to hold an Energy and Environment Symposium in the United States in early 2017. The event is expected to bring together approximately 250 leaders in the global desalination and water reuse community to explore issues and facilitate discussions to shape a path to a sustainable water supply for future generations. IDA will also convene a special meeting of its global Energy and Environment Task Force during the Symposium.

Dates and the location of the Energy and Environment Symposium will be announced soon.

IDA's commitment to host this event is being announced at the White House Water Summit, which takes place today, March 22 – World Water Day – in Washington, DC. IDA is participating in the invitation-only Summit, which is being held to raise awareness of the national importance of water, and to highlight new commitments and announcements that the Administration and non-Federal institutions are making to build a sustainable water future.

"IDA has long been committed to building a sustainable water future incorporating desalination, the world's only new source of fresh water, and water reuse programs implemented by municipalities and industry. Today this vision is becoming a reality, as water reuse programs continue to grow and as the practice of desalination benefits greatly through technology advancements aimed at reducing fossil fuel consumption and lowering the cost of producing clean water. These developments include the use of renewable energy sources such as wind, wave and solar to power desalination plants," said Patricia A. Burke, IDA's Secretary General.

The Energy and Environment Symposium is part of IDA's broader initiative to reduce energy consumption and promote best environmental practices in desalination and reuse. To this end, the Association, which serves as the point of connection for the world's desalination and water reuse industry, will present an international conference on water reuse to be held in Nice, France this September, and its next World Congress, to be held October 16-20, 2017 in São Paulo, Brazil, will focus heavily on the issue of sustainability.

In addition, IDA is a founding member of the Global Clean Water Desalination Alliance (GCWDA) – H2O minus CO2 that was launched in late 2015. The GCWDA underscores IDA's commitment to enhancing sustainability, as the action plan includes obtaining amplified commitment by all Alliance members to use clean energy sources to power new desalination plants and to retrofit existing plants, whenever possible. The concept of the Alliance underscores that the initiative will ensure that the sustainability of the entire desalination process is taken into account beyond the sole issue of energy sources.

For more information about the Energy and Environment Symposium, other IDA events or IDA's sustainability initiatives, please visit www.idadesal.org

SOURCE International Desalination Association