California considers rules for making seawater drinkable amid drought

(Reuters) — Water regulators in drought-stricken California on Wednesday were set to adopt new rules for desalination plants designed to make seawater drinkable in the latest effort to shore up water supplies as dry conditions stretch into a fourth year. The desalination rules, which put some decisions for such plants in the hands of statewide regulators rather than local water boards, come a day after the state demanded sweeping cutbacks in water use by cities and towns.