Obviously Puna is not everybody's HOME, where they were raised that is. Not everyone has lost family and or friends at early ages from rare cancers that did live within 1 mile from geothermal. Some facts may be buried, rip. How can we know if geothermal was the killer of these young souls, without a proper health study?. Because of the lack of health facilities or health studies, a known dirty, sneaky, power plant so close to residential living couldn't be why some are left with heartache.
Opihikao sorry for lumping you and your ohana into the paid off side from geothermal royalties. Yet the amount of free gas that county, state, and government employees here in Hawaii use keeps the prices high for everyone. The taxes are high to help the same offices like OHA. The state ties the geothermal resource to the price of oil yet encourages more free gas to an over inflated county and state work force that all has bubbled pension plans with puna venture or helco interests or stock. The only folks who have not seen a red cent from geothermal are the poor folks who have lived next to geothermal and has had to call it a good neighbor. The good people here were poor before geothermal, they are still poor with fewer voices to be heard.
Never has anyone from any health study walked up my driveway to simply ask a few questions about geothermal or the health impacts felt living so close for so many years. With out the affected peoples testimony how can their be a well ran health study? The allergies, skin ailments, tumors, and in some cases loss of beautiful life are felt and real. How can anyone know for sure the community has not been poisoned by our neighbor as Opihikao states?.
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Geothermal is a proven technology used the world over with great success and little to no adverse incidents. I cannot find any sympathy for a company making money hand over fist that does not pony up the dough for some concrete and rebar! As a very vocal supporter of PGV, I am quickly losing my patience.
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quote:
Originally posted by gypsy69
Obviously Puna is not everybody's HOME, where they were raised that is. Not everyone has lost family and or friends at early ages from rare cancers that did live within 1 mile from geothermal. Some facts may be buried, rip. How can we know if geothermal was the killer of these young souls, without a proper health study?. Because of the lack of health facilities or health studies, a known dirty, sneaky, power plant so close to residential living couldn't be why some are left with heartache.
How can anyone know for sure the community has not been poisoned by our neighbor as Opihikao states?.
It seems from this and your other posts, that you have already made up your mind - whether there is any data or not to support the alleged health effects.
A very extensive health study was conducted of a large population that experiences much higher exposures to hydrogen sulfide (and other geothermal gases) than has ever been experienced in the area around the Puna geothermal plant. How much higher? annual exposures that were ten to one hundred times higher than the worst extended (two week) averages recorded around PGV in any given year. Two scientific articles published on that work found that the highest exposed individuals showed no evidence of adverse respiratory nor neurological effects from those exposure levels. And, in fact, the indications were that the highest exposed individuals had fewer respiratory issues and better neurological responses than those in the lower exposure group.
You asked for links - these are links to the articles:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3594811/
http://www.ebire.org/hcnlab/papers/ReedWoods2014.pdf
I'm sure gypsy69 that you and others will have a hundred reasons why this study doesn't apply to Puna, or that it was done incorrectly, or didn't look at every conceivable health impact that you have conjured up as being associated with your (trivial) exposure to geothermal emissions. But it's the best, most extensive study of long-term exposure to geothermal emissions that has ever been done - by a respected group of health researchers with no ties to any geothermal industry - and it's findings are completely contrary to all your and PPA's claims.
The very expensive health study that the county will contract for will likely come to the same conclusions - if they can somehow filter out the prejudicial bias that you and your cohort will do your best to infiltrate into the results.
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I've said it before and I'll say it again - chemicals and gases are not coming out of the ground because we have a geothermal plant; we have a geothermal plant because chemicals and gases are coming out of the ground. On their own. Naturally.
So whether there is a 1 mile, 2 mile, 10 mile, or 200 mile radius, there would STILL be gases coming out of the ground all over the East Rift Zone. And, by the same token, what's in the Vog from the Volcano itself puts far more particles in the air than the plant.
Leilani Estates, 2011 to Present
Geo Chem, thank for your valuable opinion and study. Of course, if I (gypsy's wife) hadn't suffered I'll effects from this geothermal plants toxic releases, I might be swayed to be as biased as you and many others. Sometimes true understanding of certain situations come from personal experiences. I use to think all anti geo people where just "nimbies". Well, here I am with life long I'll effects from geo,talking with people who feel the way I use to.
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quote:
Originally posted by gypsy69
. Well, here I am with life long I'll effects from geo,talking with people who feel the way I use to.
Its the VOLCANO! It puts that nasty stuff in the air, 24x7, especially around the East Rift, right where you live.
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quote:
Originally posted by Rob Tucker
I'm generally in support of geothermal and am also specifically in support of good monitoring for public safety.
I can't think of anything I get out of it personally except this:
We've been burning fossil fuels as fast as we can for 100 years and our addiction has led us into wars in which lots of people die and suffer. I am against people dying and suffering so we as a nation can waste energy. Meanwhile the health affects of burning petrochemicals is far worst than anything geothermal is accused of.
Our island is in a position to substantially reduce our dependence on petroleum. I see that as a major plus if we choose to do it. To a large degree I see the anti geothermal faction as simple NIMBYs. The want someone else to subsidize our energy dependence. I think that is wrong. The one thing I don't see is the anti geothermal people voting with their feet and moving. If I was as affected as they claim to be by PGV I and my family would be gone in a minute.
Oh they are gone alright, but it's the new families who bought their homes who are now noticing problems, or could be sold a few times over.
It's obscene to have geothermal development in the middle of a residential area especially so close to an active volcano. How many times can you say reckless? Comparing it to fossil fuel does not make it ok to having it in the wrong location. This is a big island and it should be somewhere with a buffer zone especially if fracking methods are employed.
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Anybody who bought here after the blowout of 1991 had to have heard about it.(disclosure) If they bought here after that date, they accepted the consequences. I did.
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Right, and that disclosure you mention, was it written into your contract? And what did it say?
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