All Entries in the "Opinion" Category
Opinion: Encourage drilling for geothermal energy
Writing for the Statesman, Special Contributor Richard Parker says “It is neither the oil nor the natural gas upon which Houston’s fortune was built. Instead, beneath the seabed of the Gulf of Mexico it is the geothermal energy of the earth itself. Already, the oil and natural gas industries pump large quantities of geothermal energy [...]
Opinion: Earthquakes hinder green energy plans
Writing for IEEE Spectrum, Peter Fairley says “The extraordinary earthquake in Japan last month and the terrifying tsunami that followed left the country’s electricity infrastructure crippled. But for some green technologies, the worry is not that they will be damaged by earthquakes but that they can cause earthquakes. Measured or anticipated seismic shocks associated with [...]
Opinion: Using geothermal energy to prevent quakes must be debunked now
Following the horrific events in Japan over the last week, news reports out of India have two people, including at least one who should know better, as suggesting we could stop earthquakes and other tectonic events by simply using geothermal energy. Surya Prakash Kapoor if the Indian Meteorological Department was quoted in the Times of [...]
Opinion: Geothermal development threatens organism
In Oregon, supporters of a Lake County hot springs, including Dr. Richard Castenholz, professor emeritus of ecology and evolutionary biology at the University of Oregon, believe that geothermal development in the area are a threat to a tiny aquatic organism that lives in the hot water. They have filed a petition with the U.S. Fish [...]
International opinion: Can Kenya become Africa’s Geothermal Valley?
In an interview with TradeInvestAfrica Dr. Silas Simiyu, the managing director of the state-owned Geothermal Development Company says a “geothermal valley” in Kenya “is the goal and some people have already mooted that kind of concept. In one area where there are three geothermal fields owned by different developers, a very huge flat area lies [...]
Opinion: A land grab for renewable energy?
Writing for the Denver Post, Joanne Ditmer says “Solar energy, wind power, geothermal, gigantic transmission lines are all magic solutions that will make life better, we’re told. But a conference held in Denver earlier this month gave a sobering preview of major land decisions ahead for this nation. Experts at CLE International’s convention on Historic [...]
Opinion: Costly Chile power may jolt renewable energy
Writing for Reuters, Brad Haynes states “A long drought has dried up hydroelectric power production in Chile, sending electricity costs soaring and making renewable power sources like wind, solar and geothermal more attractive, particularly to energy-hungry miners reaping a copper windfall.” But, he adds that “If Chile recovers quickly from its energy crunch, though, experimental [...]
Opinion: Geothermal portfolio standards rig the power markets
Commenting on a recent article in Electricity Journal and writing for theenergycollective.com, Michael Giberson says “The article (“Redefining Renewable Portfolio Standards: The Value of Installed Renewable Capacity”) observes, reasonably so, that some sources of renewable power can dependably generate power around the clock, while others are somewhat less dependable. And we can all agree that [...]
Opinion: Energy subsidies shortchange geothermal
Writing for goldseek.com, Marin Katusa, Chief Energy Strategist for Casey Research says “One of geothermal’s biggest hurdles is obtaining further subsidies in an environment where all the generating technologies are competing for the same dollars. Many don’t know that the fossil fuels as well as renewables are subsidized by governments in the form of grants [...]
Opinion: Does a new (Hawai’i geothermal) report promise too much, too soon?
Writing for the Big Island Weekly, Alan D. Mcnarie notes that a state legislature authorized “Geothermal Working Group” was to “analyze the potential development of geothermal energy as the primary energy source to meet the baseload demand for electricity on the Big Island.” And an an Interim Report came back with a “Yes.” However, Mcnarie [...]
