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Harry Reid Pushes Nevada As "Saudi Arabia of Geothermal Energy"
An anonymous reader writes "Of all the 'mainstream' forms of renewable energy, it seems that geothermal power is always left in the shadows compared to solar and wind power. However, that looks set to change with news that the US Department of Energy will fund geothermal projects in northwestern Nevada and southeast Oregon. With funds from the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act, the DOE has stated a 'conditional commitment' to provide a partial guarantee for a rumored $98.5 million loan to the Nevada Geothermal Power Company (NGP). According to US Senator Harry Reid, 'Northern Nevada is the Saudi Arabia of geothermal energy.'"
The problem with geothermal is that after you extract the heat from the rocks, it takes time for the surrounding rock to heat up the cool spot you've created. This places a natural limit on the rate you can extract heat energy from a geothermal well, thus making it unsuitable for high population density areas like cities. The geological formations in some areas provide their own natural flow of subterranean water, thus constantly carrying in heat from other distant rocks to your geothermal well. But those are exceedingly rare.
Regardless, I am very optimistic about geothermal for meeting the energy needs of low population density areas. On top of that, geothermal heat pumps for heating and air conditioning, while not an energy source, improve efficiency so much that in both hot and cold regions of the country, they will typically pay for themselves in 3-7 years.
Actually, as a resident of Reno (it's not as bad as it sounds.. really) I can definitively say that there is more geothermal energy over a wider area here than in Yellowstone. My understanding is that Yellowstone has a very strong, but very locialized pocket of usable energy, whereas the entire greater Carson-Reno area is tappable for energy. There have been quite a few apartment complexes and neighborhood groups who have pitched together to fund geothermal wells in this area, and effectively end up paying about 15k as a one-time cost to eliminate an electric bill for life (well, the life of the well, anyway). Best part is, because more energy is generated than can reasonably be used by 15-20 houses, the rest gets sold back to the electric company, and NV Energy takes care of maintenance on the well in exchange.
It makes me wonder, if Senators bring in pork to their state to get re-elected, do you think there would be more pork in general if we repealed the direct election of senators, which some claim would give states more say in the Federal government? As is I think the fact that so much party money is on the line to keep representatives 'pure', which greatly distorts the idea of local elections.
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