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Posted on 01/16/2012 7:27:17 AM PST by thackney
Geothermal energy developers plan to pump 24 million gallons of water into the side of a dormant volcano in Central Oregon this summer to demonstrate new technology they hope will give a boost to a green energy sector that has yet to live up to its promise.
They hope the water comes back to the surface fast enough and hot enough to create cheap, clean electricity that isn’t dependent on sunny skies or stiff breezes — without shaking the earth and rattling the nerves of nearby residents.
Renewable energy has been held back by cheap natural gas, weak demand for power and waning political concern over global warming. Efforts to use the earth’s heat to generate power, known as geothermal energy, have been further hampered by technical problems and worries that tapping it can cause earthquakes.
Even so, the federal government, Google and other investors are interested enough to bet $43 million on the Oregon project. They are helping AltaRock Energy, Inc. of Seattle and Davenport Newberry Holdings LLC of Stamford, Conn., demonstrate whether the next level in geothermal power development can work on the flanks of Newberrry Volcano, located about 20 miles south of Bend, Ore.
...
Wells are drilled deep into the rock and water is pumped in, creating tiny fractures in the rock, a process known as hydroshearing.
...
Hydroshearing is similar to the process known as hydraulic fracturing...
(Excerpt) Read more at fuelfix.com ...
What could possibly go wrong?
That region of the globe is overdue for a really large earthquake anyway. When it happens, and it will happen, it will be blamed on this sort of technology irrespective of actual, uh, “fault.”
Geothermal energy developers plan to pump 24 million gallons of water into the side of a dormant volcano in Central Oregon this summer to demonstrate new technology they hope will give a boost to a green energy sector that has yet to live up to its promise.As you may have guessed, it's another one of Zero's harebrained 'green' wastes of taxpayer green. The company should rename itself Volyndra.
That was my first thought. Man oh man.
The big difference is that fracking isn’t dumping water onto superheated rock causing the water to flash to steam. (Which creates some serious pressure)
Well, first off, the government will 'get involved' which will shut down the process if it turns out successful.
But then the Thetans may escape!
Kaboooo!!!!!.....
Indeed. I’m just a poor engineer, but drilling into the side of a volcano strikes me as a really, really bad idea.
“What could possibly go wrong?”
I could see where the project workers could get really steamed over this.
This is right up there with the plan to send millions of mirrors into orbit to reflect the sunlight and reduce “global warming.”
You can bet if there’s taxpayer money involved,
the shareholders in this company are big contributors to democRats and 0bama.
Isn’t this water that belongs to some endangered minnow?
Because, man, they're gone.
The U.S. Department of Energy has given the project $21.5 million in stimulus funds. That has been matched by private investors, among them Google with $6.3 million.
“Would Ms.Saint Helen please pick up the courtesy phone”
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