This “Volcano Watch” article, written by the Hawaii Volcano Observatory for the Hawaii Tribune-Herald, discusses geothermal on Hawai‘i Island and the importance of balancing geothermal’s considerable benefits with its potential risks.

VOLCANO WATCH: HVO weighs-in on geothermal development

June 28, 2012 

HAWAII VOLCANOES NATIONAL PARK, Hawaii: This week’s Volcano Watch article delves into geothermal development on Hawaii Island.

The Hawaiian Volcano Observatory has been somewhat quiet during the latest push for geothermal resource development.  This article does not endorse or oppose it, and it stays clear of hotly debated topics like community health, consumer cost benefit, or allotted royalties.

The article does urge caution, however, focusing on the island’s volcanic hazards, and the impact they could have on the potential energy boon to the Aloha State. Read the rest here

When we visited Iceland, we were shown an old diesel generator that had been in standby mode since the 1970s.

We would do the same thing here. As geothermal sites went online, our previous plants could be remain in standby mode. As additional, geographically dispersed, geothermal plants came online, the plants on standby could gradually be decommissioned.