Clean Energy From Filthy Water
Key Points
- Santa Rosa and Calpine Corporation, an energy company, are partners in the world’s largest geothermal wastewater-to-power project
- Every day the Santa Rosa Geysers Recharge Project pumps some 12 million gallons of treated wastewater through a pipeline to a mountaintop 40 miles from the city and then injects it down into an aquifer a mile and a half underground
- The Obama administration is touting geothermal as a clean energy source
- The benefits to Santa Rosa are many, however, says Dan Carlson, the city’s deputy director of operations
- For santa rosa, that unique something is the Geysers, a misnamed field of fumaroles: vents in rock formations that leak steam
- High in the hills between the two communities, officials at Calpine’s geothermal operation were also in a quandary
- The partnerships Calpine formed with Santa Rosa and Lake County fixed all three problems with one simple solution: moving the wastewater to where it was wanted
- Officials in both counties are proud of their project’s environmental achievements, but they take equal satisfaction in the regulatory and financial stability they have brought
- The Geysers have been hissing for millennia, part of a geothermal system east of the San Andreas Fault
- When William Bell Elliott wandered through in 1847 as a member of a large survey team, he dubbed the steam fields the Geysers
- Rainfall could not seep into the sandstone reservoir fast enough to refill the reserves
- For residents who live within 20 miles of the production area, however, the scene is anything but pastoral
- Calpine uses $2.5 million worth of its own geothermal electricity annually to pump the water to this peak, where it is stored before being injected into the steam fields east of the Mayacamas crest
- By generating 200 megawatts of electricity from wastewater, Santa Rosa and Lake County have effectively reduced greenhouse gas emissions by two billion pounds a year: the amount that a coal-burning power plant of comparable size would spew into the atmosphere
- For entrepreneurs and scientists hoping to expand the use of geothermal energy nationwide, the Calpine project offers a wealth of experience
- For the many potential sites that lack an adequate supply of water to inject into the hot rocks, the power plants at the Geysers still serve as an inspiration
Summary & OpinionCities in California use treated wastewater for production of energy. One of them being Santa Rosa; this city pumps at least 12 millions gallons of treated water for the sake of energy and electricity. The water is being transported to an aquifer that is predicted to supply water to 10% of the U.S. in the next 4 decades. It is is astonishing that this type of generation of electricity not only is environmentally safe, but also it has reduced the amount of greenhouse gas emission. Despite this however, there is also a long process to treat the water, physically, biologically, and chemically. The process includes physically taking large chunks of waste in the water through filtration, and letting the rest of the water sit to allow separation of sediments. Then it is put through process where organisms are put in the water to breakdown the organic materials and unwanted nutrients. Finally the water is chemically altered to remove parasites. However a downside is the possible earthquakes that occur due to the pumping of the water.
I find it fascinating that the water once used will be used again in the future. It is both interesting and disgusting; sewage water is often from rainfall and whatever comes through. Although there are safety precautions used to make sure the water is safe; I wonder sometimes how clean my water truly is. It is eye-opening to realize water that I have used, have probably used by another person at some point in the past. However I think it is smart and efficient to clean the water that we’ve used and recycle it for later. A way to ensure the future; finally a plan for the future instead of putting it off for the next generation to think about. I think that this method is not perfect, but I also believe that there truly is no way to create more energy that does not pose threats or consequences; it is a matter of which one is the safest and most renewable. The fact that these pumps can cause earthquakes is frightening; to think that we have are now past tampering with our atmosphere but have moved onto our soil is a little unnerving. I am also curious as to what potential catastrophe this will cause in the future, and if we could ever find a permanent solution to our problems.
I find it fascinating that the water once used will be used again in the future. It is both interesting and disgusting; sewage water is often from rainfall and whatever comes through. Although there are safety precautions used to make sure the water is safe; I wonder sometimes how clean my water truly is. It is eye-opening to realize water that I have used, have probably used by another person at some point in the past. However I think it is smart and efficient to clean the water that we’ve used and recycle it for later. A way to ensure the future; finally a plan for the future instead of putting it off for the next generation to think about. I think that this method is not perfect, but I also believe that there truly is no way to create more energy that does not pose threats or consequences; it is a matter of which one is the safest and most renewable. The fact that these pumps can cause earthquakes is frightening; to think that we have are now past tampering with our atmosphere but have moved onto our soil is a little unnerving. I am also curious as to what potential catastrophe this will cause in the future, and if we could ever find a permanent solution to our problems.