One of the most promising energy sources in America today is geothermal, which harnesses the natural heat contained in deep geological formations to generate electricity. Tim Fitzpatrick, reporter for The Salt Lake Tribune, recently provided an excellent overview.
Using technologies and talented workers from the oil and gas industry, geothermal developers are drilling for zero-carbon sources of energy that can provide electricity consistently around the clock.
The federal government projects that 60 gigawatts of geothermal power generation could be built in the U.S. between now and 2050. That’s the equivalent of 60 large-scale nuclear power plants, or 8.5% of the nation’s projected power generating capacity by the middle of this century.
Utah is already a leader in this promising sector. The Frontier Observatory for Research in Geothermal Energy (FORGE) is located in Beaver County and the state ranks third in the nation for geothermal electricity capacity, behind California and Nevada.
Given the tremendous potential of this energy source, the federal government should be rolling out the red carpet to geothermal developers. But instead, the opposite is happening — geothermal is getting tripped up by red tape.
For this reason, Republican Utah Congressman John Curtis is spearheading legislation aimed at cutting through this bureaucratic gridlock and unleashing the full potential of geothermal in our state and across the country.
The bill — the Geothermal Opportunity Act — addresses the permitting challenges that hinder the development of geothermal energy, especially on federal land in Western states. Right now, even after a project is approved, the U.S. Interior Department is withholding subsequent approvals that are needed for construction to begin because of lawsuits that are filed by environmental groups and other special interests.
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