Thursday, July 17, 2008

Energy policy: Oil Shale Ken Salazar (via The Washington Post): "The governors of Wyoming and Colorado, communities and editorial boards across the West agree that the administration's headlong rush is a terrible idea. Even energy companies, including Chevron, have said we need to proceed more cautiously on oil shale. With more than 30,000 acres of public land at their disposal to conduct research, development and demonstration projects (in addition to 200,000 undeveloped acres of private oil shale lands they own in Colorado and Utah), they already have more land than they can develop in the foreseeable future." Here's the link to my Examiner column on oil shale earlier this year. "cc" 6:20:21 PM     Energy policy: Geothermal From The Aspen Daily News: "City of Aspen officials have identified five spots in town where an exploratory geothermal well could be drilled. The city has also applied for geothermal water rights for underground stores of water that would be used in the system, making Aspen the first municipality to take advantage of a new state law: The Colorado Geothermal Act. The city hopes to create a public utility that would harvest geothermal heat from under ground and distribute it to downtown Aspen buildings. Preliminary studies show that as much as 1 million square feet could be heated "at a cost competitive with natural gas," according to a city press release...As a network of 19th century mining tunnels runs underneath Aspen's streets, and as those tunnels are filling up with water, a proposed city geothermal system would tap into those waters, which provide a more efficient heating source than solid ground...Aspen...sits on top of a geological phenomenon called the 'Aspen Anomaly,' which refers to an area stretching from approximately Leadville to Paonia where the earth's crust is thinner than in other areas. Thinner crust means warmer underground temperatures than might be expected otherwise." More coverage from The Aspen Times. They write: The geothermal heat would work by taking the steam and hot water produced in the earth's core and using it to heat a glycol-based solution that circulates through buildings to heat them. Customers would pay according to the thermal units of energy used as the heated liquid goes by their building. Electricity is still be needed to move the water. Five locations have been identified for possible test wells, according to Overeynder: in Wagner Park, at the base of Aspen Mountain, Smuggler Park, Ajax Park and near the Cowenhoven Tunnel, according to Overeynder. All are on city-owned land or city-owned right-of-ways, except the latter, he said. It is on the edge of a right-of-way and might require land acquisition. The wells will be underground, but Aspen residents can expect an impact during the drilling process. All are the sites are near mined areas, but not in them, he said. Actually drilling into mined areas complicates matters, said Overeynder. However, the city wanted to drill near the mining sites because anecdotal evidence suggested they might hold geothermal activity. Miners used to work in shifts because it was too hot to spend any extended length of time in the mines, according to Overeynder. Overeynder expected the cost of the geothermal energy to be competitive with natural gas. In Pagosa Springs, he said, the energy is sold at 75 percent of natural gas rates. However, he acknowledged that customers with existing natural gas heating systems will need to make infrastructure changes in order to be able to use the geothermal energy. If underground Aspen proves to be a good geothermal source, the city may create a "heat district" like its current electric and water districts, he said. Or it may decide to develop a joint venture with a private company... The city plans to drill the test well in 2009, and it is still determining the cost of that well and looking for funding from places like the Governor's Energy Office. The well will be drilled as deep as 3,000 feet -- double the depth of historic mines. Depending on what is found, the city might proceed to drill wells at up to five sites. Ultimately, said Overeynder, the city wants to find a well or combination of wells that will produce 5,000 gallons per minute of 140-degree water. More Coyote Gulch coverage here. "cc" 6:13:43 AM

© Copyright 2009 John Orr. Last update: 3/15/09; 3:40:17 PM. This theme is based on the SoundWaves (blue) Manila theme.