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Carey, I know this is my soap-box response but I really don't see these issues as insurmountable. If there is a will there is a way. We humans have been interrupting migratory routes for a long time. What depth do they actually use? It is not as if there were no other routes available; they could adapt. Maybe. I know that is not totally considerate of the animals but it is honest. As for the infrastructure... that is a problem for all our power needs in the long term. It is not that I suggest we just drop a few turbines in at random and see what happens. It just seems to be a very very practical solution to be explored. Imagine turbines on runners that could be moved to deeper and shallower depths depending on the need for maint, staying out of the way of animals.... whatever. Just seems like it would be worth exploring.
Okay, I will go to bed now. LOL...
I want to be the kind of woman that, when my feet
hit the floor each morning, the devil says
"Oh Crap, She's up!"
I want to be the kind of woman that, when my feet
hit the floor each morning, the devil says
"Oh Crap, She's up!"
Posts: 299
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Joined: Jun 2003
One of the main problems with "alternative" sources like solar and wind is storage. Power needs to be produced when it is needed--there is as yet no industrial sized method of storage for later use. There are many people working on this and here is one interesting idea
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=Sddb0Khx0yA
Once some sort of viable storage solution is found then it will be much more feasible to make a fundamental shift in how power is produced.
Jerry
Art and Orchids B&B
http://www.artandorchids.com
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Yes looks like all the knowledgeble folks on this thread. I'm not knowledgeble but I'm more like the question asker. i think I speculated earlier about residual byproducts of refining gas being used for electricity. and even if oil isn't refined on the Big Island you have to think Hawaii going to be dependent on "imported oil" as long as that's what you put in the gas tank regardless of advent of alternative energy.
Also how those great chemtainer water tanks-
http://www.chemtainerofhawaii.com/
They are claimed to be made in Hawaii. Which is quite a revelation- an industrial product manufactured in Hawaii?? i wonder if this product wouldn't be possible if it wasn't for other byproducts of the oil refinery on oahu?
Also i'm confused about something I read about PGV isn't producing their full capacity of electricity because helco doesn't need it??
Another thing- PGV seems to have the proven technology for geothermal. helco sifting thru other newer geothermal technology bidders- any evidence these newer technologies work? gotta ask the hard questions.
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Aloha Tada
I'm with you. It isn't the smartest or the strongest that survive. It's the ones that can adapt to change that survive-- Darwin.
I think that we are in survival mode. I know as a farmer, I cut straight to the chase.
Keep on asking the questions. We all benefit
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Mahalo RH- Actually I got the first confirmation of my theory about "residual oil" was listening to Guy Toyama on the Charleneongreen show on AM 760
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Does anyone know some of the socio economic indicators for Puna, such as number of students who participate in the subsidized lunch programs?
A friend of mine told me that one of the schools in his district-Wahiawa, have 85% of the students participating in the program. I saw a Star Advertiser article that pointed out that Pahoa High and Elementary had the second highest absenteeism rate in the state. We know that education is an indicator of future family income. How could an enlightened geothermal operator or utility affect the indicators in a positive way?
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This link seems to tell me that Hawaii has two refineries???
http://www.hawaiibusiness.com/Hawaii-Bus...-products/
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Richard,
Putting aside dakine's "hardened stance" and wish that geothermal would just "go away", he posed some legitimate concerns that deserve to be addressed. To wit:
"The fact that attempts to locate such a resource have not all been successful, does not seem to enter the current discussion much. Nor does the fact that anything built on Kilauea, especially on it's rift zones, is subject to earthquakes that could break the wells, as well as inundation by lava flows, seems to be overlooked when people refer to geothermal in Hawaii. When we discuss the infrastructure issues with regards the bottleneck of highway 130, and the potential for earthquakes and lava flows to disrupt the lives of everyone dependent upon this single transportation corridor, this too seems to be minimized when discussing the transmission of power generated by geothermal that relies on the same corridor."
The public really needs to be educated on all dimensions of the issue; I personally would be interested in hearing a response to dakine's concerns from someone knowledgeable about geothermal. Thanks in advance for sharing your thoughts on this.
Tim
A superior man is modest in his speech, but exceeds in his actions--Confucius
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Bill, there are 2 refineries on Oahu Island, the Tesoro refinery (which the parent company announced in January plans to divest from:
http://www.staradvertiser.com/news/break...=137061218 ) & the Chevron refinery. There are no refineries left on Hawaii Island.
Richard, The DOE does track all of that info. The Kau, Keaau, Pahoa complex general info is here, search for more specifics:
http://165.248.6.166/data/complexarea.as...lexarea=11
and Citi-Data is always good for a whole host of socio-economic indicators, including education attainment (Pahoa is linked here - scroll way down for ed data):
http://www.city-data.com/city/Pahoa-Hawaii.html
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Aloha Punafish and Da Kine
Although I have asked these same questions, I do not feel qualified to answer as if I am an authority. So, I asked for help.
To the concern about putting all our eggs in one basket. I do agree that dispersal is a good strategy. We need to get better information about where other alternatives lie. I visited Iceland this past August and they kept their some of their old oil fired units in standby mode as risk mitigation. I imagine we would do the same.
