Commissioners voted 10-2 Thursday to allow construction of the plant, which is expected to meet the Ocean View Plaza housing and commercial development's need for some 25,000 gallons of water each day.

Water availability had been the main sticking point for the proposed 92,000-square foot complex, which would also include a museum dedicated to Cannery Row's history.

The Coastal Commission this week also approved a plan for a desalination plant north of San Diego that would be the Western Hemisphere's largest.

More than a dozen more such plants remain under consideration across California.

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Information from: The Monterey County Herald, http://www.montereyherald.com