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From: bob@islenet.UUCP (Bob Cunningham)
Newsgroups: net.politics,net.sci
Subject: Re: Re: Nuclear power and Alternatives: Geothermal
Message-ID: <2792@islenet.UUCP>
Date: Thu, 11-Sep-86 07:22:38 EDT
Article-I.D.: islenet.2792
Posted: Thu Sep 11 07:22:38 1986
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Organization: Hawaii Institute of Geophysics
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> The main problem with geothermal wells is that you tend to have to dig
> VERY deep wells.  Few places exist where magma is close enough to the
> surface to heat groundwater...

It's surprising how many places are suitable:  portions of the U.S. Pacific
northwest, California, Japan, etc. along the "ring of fire" circling the
Pacific Ocean, plus the Hawaiian islands (where there is very active
development of geothermal sources).  Not so surprisingly (given the
geological conditions) those are precisely areas where coal generally
isn't.

The temperature difference doesn't have to be extreme, remember that ocean
thermal energy conversion technology works with a relatively small thermal
difference (though it does require lots of water, and thus its usefulness is
primarily confined to ocean & nearshore sites between 35 degrees north or
south of the Equator).
-- 
Bob Cunningham  {humu|ihnp4}!{islenet|uhmanoa}!bob
		cunninghamr%haw.sdscnet@LLL-MFE.ARPA
Hawaii Institute of Geophysics, University of Hawaii