Geothermal Heat Pump-Will the Geo Thermal Energy Generation at the Salton Sea Cause the Surrounding Areas to Sink?

Many people don't realize this, but the harvesting of geothermal energy to run steam turbines to make electricity has some drawbacks. You see, the heat from the earth helps push up tectonic plates, as it expands the ground. If you remove the heat, then it causes the area to sink down a little bit. This can be a tremendous problem for underground water mains and pipes. It can also cause seismic events to occur. When we say seismic we mean earthquakes. Oh, so now I've got your attention.

That's good because this is a very serious issue. Currently, there is a geothermal energy generation plant near the Salton Sea in California, and they are taking lots of energy, heat from the earth and converting it into electricity. Then the electricity goes through a high tension power lines all the way along the I-10 corridor to Los Angeles. Yes, even those folks in California use lots of energy; don't let all their talk of green alternative energy fool you.

Still, it could be said that geothermal energy is alternative energy. But a lot of people don't know that when you take heat out of the ground it takes a while to replenish that heat. If you take too much, too quickly, the Earth doesn't have time to replace it. And this is when the pressure is released and the ground sinks down. This can also cause an earthquake, or in some instances relieve pressure and prevent an earthquake.

Therefore, if you take the heat energy from the earth in just the right place you can prevent earthquakes and get free energy. That is, if you take just the right amount of energy and not too much. All this is pretty interesting isn't it? Still, the issue of the ground sinking can also be a problem, especially if you own a home that is on the settling ground. I sure hope you will please consider all this.





By Lance Winslow