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Madison Cales

Mr. Mac

Projects 10 P1

14 December 2017

Geothermal Energy

Ocean waters are rising as America fails to fully participate in reducing carbon emissions.

Maui needs to take a stand to make sure that its carbon footprint left on this Earth is considerably

less than other states. The island of Maui should strongly consider switching to all renewable

energy, preferably geothermal energy. Maui should invest in geothermal energy because the

island is located in a seismically active region of the Earth, geothermal energy can create

sustainable amounts of energy, and its earths most environmentally safe renewable energy

source.

The island of Maui is located in the Pacific Ocean, in a region full of seismic activity.

Seismic regions are places that small, unnoticeable, earthquakes occur. The Hawaiian islands are

located on the Pacific tectonic plate, a very active seismic region (Pararas-Carayannis). A

tectonic plate is part of the earths crust that constantly moves, causing earthquakes and

volcanoes to form (Plate Tectonics). Earthquakes indicate potentially hot groundwater locations,

generally referred to as hotspots (How Geothermal Energy Works). If hotspots are attainable, the

future of geothermal energy is bright. Geothermal energy can be harnessed in several different

approaches, the most common way to access this type of energy is through a process called

flash steam. The flash steam system has pipes that are laid approximately one mile
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underground, for a flash steam power plant to work, temperatures must reach 360 degrees

fahrenheit or above in order to work (Doeden). The scorching groundwater is then pumped to the

surface of the Earth, the hot water is exposed to very low air pressures, creating large amounts of

steam. As the steam is produced, it begins to rise to generate turbines that turn steam energy into

electricity (Doeden). Hotspots are also an ideal location for flash steam power plants, Maui has

four geothermally accessible locations: the Southwest ridge of Haleakala, West Hana, Paia , and

Southwest Maui (Geothermal Potential Areas). With many accessible geothermal locations,

Maui should take advantage of geothermal energy because it will continue to be produced for

billions of years (Doeden).

Geothermal energy can create outstanding amounts of energy. The state of Hawaii has an

existing geothermal plant on the island of Hawaii, known as the Puna Geothermal Venture, it

is capable of producing 38 megawatts of electricity a year (Hawaiian Electric). The Puna

geothermal plant is located on the Kilauea East Rift Zone, rift zones are seismically active

locations, often prime areas for geothermal accessibility. The company who owns the Puna

geothermal plant: Ormat, believes that there is geothermal energy harnessable on Mauis

Ulapalakua Ranch. The Ranch is located on the Southwest Haleakala Rift Zone, known as a Hot

temperature resource area, meaning it is a potential area for a geothermal energy power plant to

be (Geothermal on Ulapalakua Ranch). Only places that are designated as geothermal resources

subzones are allowed to have geothermal electrical production on them. Ormat will attempt to

get Ulapalakua Ranch designated as a geothermal subzone, so they can proceed to research,

design, and build a geothermal power plant on Maui. Large amounts of energy exist on Maui,

The Maui County Energy Alliance estimates that Maui might have 140MW of geothermal
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generating potential (Geothermal on Ulapalakua Ranch). Maui can take advantage of

geothermal resources to create large sustainable amounts of renewable and reliable energy for

the future.

Many beneficial renewable resources exist but geothermal energy is the most reliable.

Wind and solar energy are renewable energy sources being used in present day Maui. Although

wind and solar energy are renewable sources used in Maui, that does not mean theyre

necessarily the right choice of renewable energy for Maui. Wind has multiple disadvantages:

turbines produce noise, they kill thousands of birds a year, the cost to build wind turbines can

soar well above two-million dollars a piece, the efficiency percentage of a turbine is incredibly

low compared to geothermal energy, and turbines often make natural scenery less attractive

(Johnson). Along with wind energy, solar energy has many disadvantages as well: solar systems

rely on the sun, which is not a consistent source of energy due to clouds covering the sun

frequently, they are costly to install, a solar panel contains many possible environmental

contaminants, and after several years, the panel begins to deteriorate after being exposed to the

sun (Gromicko). Geothermal energy compared to solar and wind energy has only one major set

back, its cost. The cost of a geothermal system depends on the location and well as the system

that is being installed. Despite the high costs, efficiency levels are exceptional. The efficiency

also depends on the size of the system and the type of system being installed. These efficiency

percentages can be anywhere from 300% to 500% (Bridgewater 139) as solar is only 16% to

18% efficient (Martin), and wind is only 30% to 50% efficient (The Wind Energy Fact Sheet).

Geothermal energy has no obstacles once installed, it can produce a constant supply of energy

year round (Geothermal Basics). Converting to geothermal is considered as earth-friendly as

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you can get (Bridgewater 139). Geothermal produces a clean waste product: steam (Doeden),

while solar panels could leak harmful chemical (Gromicko), and wind energy turbines are

harmful to the ecosystem by killing thousands of birds a year (Johnson). By decreasing the

societys utilization of fossil fuels, carbon emissions will diminish, cutting back on global

warming.

Maui should fully invest in geothermal energy as its main source of renewable energy.

The location of Maui is a prime spot to place a geothermal plant. Based on the regions

seismically active tectonic plates, geothermal hot spots are accessible. With consideration of

accessibility, geothermal plants have an extremely high efficiency level compared to other

energy sources, and geothermal energy is qualified the cleanest renewable energy source for the

environment. Although wind and solar can produce clean and renewable energy, they cannot

compete with the cleanliness and renewability of geothermal energy. Maui needs to take action

immediately and make geothermal power the number one energy provider for the island. The

environment is begging for the world to switch to all renewable energy sources, the island of

Maui should take action and decrease the islands carbon footprint left on this earth. Maui may

not significantly change the global warming issue, but it could cause other places in the world to

take action to reduce carbon emissions as well. With cooperation, the world can change.

Converting Maui to all renewable energy could influence the United States and other parts of the

world to take part in saving the environment.

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Works Cited

Bridgewater, Alan, and Gill Bridgewater. Renewable Energy for Your Home: Using

off-Grid Energy to Reduce Your Footprint, Lower Your Bills and Be More Self-Sufficient.

Accessible Publishing Systems, 2010.

Doeden, Matt. Finding Out About Geothermal Energy. Lerner Publications Company,

2015.

Geothermal Basics Geothermal Basics - <Basics, geo-energy.org/Basics.aspx>. Web.

Accessed. 8 Nov. 2017.

Geothermal. Hawaiian Electric,

<www.hawaiianelectric.com/clean-energy-hawaii/clean-energy-facts/renewable-energy-sources/

geothermal>.Web. Accessed 8 Nov. 2017

Geothermal on Ulapalakua Ranch. Maui Tomorrow

Foundation.<maui-tomorrow.org/geothermal-on-ulapalakua-ranch/>. Web. Accessed 16 Dec.

2017

Geothermal Potential Areas -- Maui County. Alliance of Maui Community Associations

, <maui-communities.weebly.com/geothermal-potential-areas----maui-county.html>. Web.

Accessed 15 Nov. 2017.

Gromicko, Nick.Disadvantages of Solar Energy.

<www.nachi.org/disadvantages-solar-energy.htm>. Web. Accessed 21 Nov. 2017.

How Geothermal Energy Works. Union of Concerned Scientists,

<www.ucsusa.org/clean_energy/our-energy-choices/renewable-energy/how-geothermal-energy-

works.html#.WgPCyFWnHIU>. Web. Accessed 8 Nov. 2017.

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Johnson, Matthew. 10 Disadvantages of Wind Energy: Not as Clean as You Thought.

<blog.udemy.com/disadvantages-of-wind-energy/>.Web. Accessed 21 Nov. 2017.

Martin, Richard. First Solar's Cells Break Efficiency Record . MIT Technology

Review, <www.technologyreview.com/s/600922/first-solars-cells-break-efficiency-record/>.

Web. Accessed 14 Dec. 2017

Mooney, Carla. Geothermal Power. Reference Point Press, 2012.

Pararas-Carayannis, George. HAWAII EARTHQUAKE - THE EARTHQUAKE OF 15

OCTOBER 2006 IN HAWAII - by Dr. George Pararas-Carayannis,

<www.drgeorgepc.com/Earthquake2006Hawaii.html>. Web. Accessed 11 Dec. 2017.

Plate Tectonics. Information and Facts | National

Geographic.<www.nationalgeographic.com/science/earth/the-dynamic-earth/plate-tectonics/>.

Web. Accessed 16 Dec. 2017.

Puna Geothermal Venture (PGV). Hawaiian Electric,

<www.hawaiianelectric.com/clean-energy-hawaii/clean-energy-facts/renewable-energy-sources/

geothermal/puna-geothermal-venture-(pgv)>. Web. Accessed 16 Dec. 2017.

The Wind Energy Fact Sheet . The Wind Energy Fact Sheet ,

<www.environment.nsw.gov.au/resources/households/WindEnergyfactsheet.pdf>. Web.

Accessed 16 Dec. 2017.

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