Will it spark an earthquake? Fears over plans to pour 24 million gallons of water - and $43 MILLION - into Oregon volcano to see if it can create electricity

Engineers are set to pour 24 million gallons of water into a dormant volcano in Oregon to test whether it can create a renewable source of energy that does not rely on the weather.

Water will be pumped into the Newberry volcano - 20 miles south of Bend, Oregon - to pick up heat from fractures in the base of the rock. The heated water then turns to steam, generating power.

But the project, which will start this summer, has sparked concerns that pumping water deep into the belly of a volcano could lead to an earthquake - as similar projects have in the past.

Getting ready: Newberry Crater project drilling manager Fred Wilson at the site in May 2008. This summer, engineers will pump water into the volcano to see if they can generate electricity from the earth's heat



Using the earth's heat to generate power, known as geothermal energy, is an alternative to other renewable energy sources, such as turbines or solar panels.

These processes rely on stiff breezes and regular sunshine to generate enough power, yet the geothermal technology can provide a consistent source of energy.

But as well as quake fears, there are also concerns it is hard to create a reservoir big enough to run a commercial power plant.

Despite these worries, the federal government, Google and other investors are interested enough to bet $43 million on the Oregon project.

Together with AltaRock Energy, Inc. from Seattle and Davenport Newberry Holdings LLC from Stamford, Connecticut, they will test whether the new level in geothermal power can work.

'We know the heat is there,' Susan Petty, president of AltaRock, told the Associated Press. 'The big issue is can we circulate enough water through the system to make it economic.'

Site: The Newberry Volcano, which has not erupted in 1,300 years, is 20 miles south of Bend, Oregon. Geothermal developers are interested in extracting heat from hot rocks beneath the surface

Distance: Developers say it is far enough from an urban area that damage is unlikely if there is an quake

In geothermal energy, hot water or steam that bubbles near the surface is used to turn a turbine creating electricity. But most viable areas have been exploited.

Now engineers are in search of places with hot rocks that are not cracked, using a new technology called Enhanced Geothermal Systems.

'To build geothermal in a big way beyond where it is now requires new technology, and that is where EGS comes in,' Steve Hickman, a research geophysicist with the U.S. Geological Survey in Menlo Park, California, told the AP.

Wells are drilled deep into the rock and water is pumped in, creating tiny fractures in the rock, a process known as hydroshearing. Cold water is then pumped down wells into the reservoir, and steam is drawn out.

Over three weeks, AltaRock will pour 800 gallons of water per minute into the 10,600-foot test well.

The process will produce a reservoir of cracks starting about 6,000 feet below the surface, and reaching down to 11,000 feet. It would be about 3,300 feet in diameter.

How it works: The graphic shows how water will be pumped under the surface and generate power

Thanks to worries about earthquakes and space constraints, progress in the technology has been slow so far.



There are two small plants in France and Germany. A project in Australia has had drilling problems, while a plant in Basel, Switzerland, was shut down after earthquake complaints.



'That's the $64,000 question. What's the biggest earthquake we can have from induced seismicity that the public can worry about'

Ernie Majer, seismologist

An international protocol comes out at the end of this month that urges EGS developers to keep projects out of urban areas to avoid quake damage.



It is believed that the danger of a major earthquake at Newberry is low as it has no significant fault lines. It is also far enough from populated areas that property damage would be unlikely.

But the Department of Energy will be monitoring the project and any significant quakes would shut it down temporarily.

'That's the $64,000 question,' Ernie Majer, a seismologist with the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, said. 'What's the biggest earthquake we can have from induced seismicity that the public can worry about.'

The U.S. Department of Energy has given the project $21.5 million, which has been matched by private investors, among them Google with $6.3 million.



Process: Cold water will be pumped below the surface, cracking rocks and extracting heat. When the water is pumped back to the surface, it escapes as steam that can be used to generate power through a turbine

The U.S. Bureau of Land Management released an environmental assessment of the Newberry project last month that does not foresee any problems that would stop it, the AP reported. The agency is taking public comments before making a final decision about the project's future.

No power plant is proposed, but one could be operating in about 10 years, Doug Perry, president and CEO of Davenport Newberry, told the AP.



If successful, the results could be significant.

An assessment in 2008 found EGS throughout the West, where hot rocks are closer to the surface than in the East, could produce half the country's electricity.

'The important question we need to answer now,' said Colin Williams, a geophysicist who compiled the assessment, 'is how geothermal fits into the renewable energy picture, and how EGS fits. How much it is going to cost, and how much is available.'

