Making desalinated water is relatively cheap. You can do it with a clear tarp and sunlight. Desalination at scale is less cheap. Almost all water is cheap.
One (there are several) problem with desalination is that it often has to compete with free.
In many parts of North America the water is actually free. Like New York City-- their water falls from the sky in upstate NY, for free, into reservoirs that are not free to maintain to be distributed by colossal public works projects which are 100% not free.
Pumping water, desalinated or not, to your house is not free.
Whoever is charging you $0.0136/gal for water may indeed (especially if you don't live in an arid region with strange water rights laws) be charging you $0.0136/gal to pump water to your house and $0.0000/gal for the actual water.
If they switch to a desalinated source it is highly likely they will charge you $0.0136/gal + ≥$0.0010/gal = ≥$0.0146/gal.
Of course, if you live near a source of salt water you can cut out the middleman and, after massive up-front capital outlays, desalinate your own water for ≥$0.001/gal assuming you live long enough to recoup the cost of the initial expense.
One (there are several) problem with desalination is that it often has to compete with free.
In many parts of North America the water is actually free. Like New York City-- their water falls from the sky in upstate NY, for free, into reservoirs that are not free to maintain to be distributed by colossal public works projects which are 100% not free.
Pumping water, desalinated or not, to your house is not free.
Whoever is charging you $0.0136/gal for water may indeed (especially if you don't live in an arid region with strange water rights laws) be charging you $0.0136/gal to pump water to your house and $0.0000/gal for the actual water.
If they switch to a desalinated source it is highly likely they will charge you $0.0136/gal + ≥$0.0010/gal = ≥$0.0146/gal.
Of course, if you live near a source of salt water you can cut out the middleman and, after massive up-front capital outlays, desalinate your own water for ≥$0.001/gal assuming you live long enough to recoup the cost of the initial expense.