In October 2021, The Press Democrat reported that Fort Bragg, California, had installed a newly bought mobile reverse osmosis unit. It was a last resort for when brackish tidal water reached the Madsen Hole intake on the Noyo River. The USD 335,000 unit was paid from state emergency drought funds. It could treat up to 288,000 gallons a day (1,090 m³/d), but brine disposal limits at the sewer plant halved that to 144,000 (545 m³/d). The town of about 7,300 residents used some 550,000 gallons daily (about 2,080 m³/d).
The report showed how a small coastal town turned to mobile desalination as a last reserve after two very dry years. The limiting factor was less the technology than the disposal of brine.
Source: The Press Democrat