permeability, so waters in the formations above and below do not mix. All the tests produced excellent results and SAWS went ahead with design of a full-scale project at Twin Oaks. The pilot well is only 300 feet from a working ASR well. Production did not affect the stored Edwards water. A variety of membranes were tested to determine their treatment efficiency with the actual brackish source water. In March of 2010 Weir Labatt, who has been involved in regional water issues for decades as a San Antonio city councilman and an EAA and Texas Water Development Board member, said that a large-scale desalination plant on the coast is the solution to the city's future water needs. While participating in a panel discussion for radio broadcast, Mr. Labatt said "I think SAWS ought to crank up and put a plant on the coast." SAWS long-term water plan does include such a plant, but not until 2060. SAWS President and CEO Robert Puente said "That's finance science fiction today." Ocean water desalination is extraordinarily expensive -- more than 10 times the cost of Aquifer water, and a plant and pipeline would cost well over $1 billion in today's dollars. ( 17 )