The overarching goal of the proposed paper is to present an objective review of existing information on seawater intake and brine discharges. It will comprehensively review and summarize the information available, including the means to measure, minimize, and mitigate for intake and discharge impacts. The literature to be reviewed will include both peer-reviewed and “gray” literature (e.g., industry reports). Where available, original empirical data will be relied on (e.g., Carlsbad discharge monitoring) to support science-based conclusions about environmental impacts. Finally, the paper will address various misconceptions and fallacies identified in the literature.