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| Q | What is geothermal energy? |
| A | Geothermal energy, is literally 'heat from the earth'. Geothermal reservoirs of super-heated water occur in regions of high heat flow and fractured, permeable rock formations. Fractures in the earth's crust allow hot groundwater to rise towards the surface where it may become sealed by impermeable rock. Surface manifestations of geothermal reservoirs include hot springs and geysers. |
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| Q | How does geothermal energy become electricity? |
| A | To access the hot water resource, production wells are typically drilled 4000 to 8000 feet below the surface. Water with temperatures of 250° to 450° F is brought to the surface where it is flashed to steam. The steam is then used to drive the turbines to generate electricity; the residual water is cooled and re-injected underground to recharge the reservoir. |
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| Q | Is geothermal energy a proven source of power? |
| A | Yes, globally, there is over 8000 megawatts of installed geothermal capacity in 21 countries producing 49,000 giga-watt-hours of electricity per year, enough to supply 30 million people. |
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| Q | Are there geothermal power installations in the United States? |
| A | Yes, geothermal power already constitutes approximately 5% of California and Nevada's electrical power supply. The geysers in California have been producing clean renewable electrical power for 40 years. |
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| Q | What is the geothermal power capacity of the United States? |
| A | Nearly 2,800 megawatt (MW) of geothermal power, producing 14 to 17 billion kilowatts-hours per year of electricity, worth about $1 billion in annual utility sales, are generated in the states of California, Nevada, Hawaii and Utah. |
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| Q | How is the US Federal Government facilitating the development of new geothermal projects? |
| A | In January 2000, "GeoPowering the West", was launched to expand the production of geothermal energy activities in 19 western states. The goals of the initiative include:
- Supplying at least 10 percent of the electricity needs of the west by 2020 with 20,000 megawatts of geothermal energy installed;
- Supplying the electric power of heating needs of at least seven million homes through geopower by 2010, and
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| Q | Is geothermal capacity expected to increase in Nevada? |
| A | Yes, Nevada has recently adopted policies to increase renewable energy production in the state. In 2001, Nevada Legislature passed the Renewable Energy Law requiring Utilities to obtain a percentage of their total electric power sales from renewable energy such as geothermal. The regulations require every utility to derive 6% of electrical power sales from renewables by the end of 2006 rising to 20% by 2015. The State of California has similar legislation. |
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| Q | How many geothermal power plants are in the State of Nevada? |
| A | Currently, there are 12 producing geothermal sites in Nevada with outputs ranging from 2.2 - 62 MW. Geothermal plant capacity for the State was 308.9 MW for 2007. |
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| Q | Is geothermal energy environmentally friendly? |
| A | Yes, there are comparatively minute quantities of gases (such as carbon dioxide) emitted from geothermal electric power plants. Gaseous emissions from geothermal power plants can be considered essentially 'net zero'. |
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| Q | Is energy from a geothermal reservoir sustainable? |
| A | To date not a single geothermal field has been exhausted, although reservoir pressures and temperatures have slowly declined in response to production. Typically geothermal power plants have a 30 to 50 year life span before equipment needs to be replaced. The world's first geothermal power plant at Larderello, Italy, built in 1904, is still producing. The geysers in California have been in production since the early 1960's. |
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