HID::TO KONOCJ·~ ,#",

GFORG E R ARIYOSHI

AND ECONOi\;\IC DE~,ELQt.JV\ENT . FRANKv:~~~Vv~,~~,~

Kama malu Bu ild in g . ~O 'SOiil Ji, King 51.. HJildl6Ju ~ Hal,.,a,i • Ma il ing Address: PeO. Bo~ 2359. Honolulu. Hawa ii :J580~, . \, !: -

DEPART ENT ~O F i \ pt1\ NN I NG

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Mr. ~villiam 'lhorrprn01aintan .Department of Lan and Natural ResourcesState Office Building .Honolulu, Hawaii 96813

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Dear. .Nr • .Thompso

Enclosed is a ropy of the EnviroI1ITEntal Impact StatementPreparation Noti , for the Geothermal Research FacilitY Project atPuna, Ha,;vaii. 'lh1s notice was submitted to the Environmental .Quality COmnissio on August 30,1977. .

Because of YOlflr keen interest and involvement with the PunaGeothenral project, we are requesting your corrmentson the projectat this t..irne. yoilir comments will-assist us in the development ofthe Draft Enviro ntal Impact Statement which is required for theproject.

~'le appreciate your cooperation in this matter.

Sincerely yours,

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ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT STATEMENTPREPARATION NOTICE FOR THE

GEOTHERMAL RESEARCH FACILITYUTI' IZING THE HGP-A WELL AT PUNA, HAWAI I

1. Proposing Agency

Department of Pla ning and Economic Development, State of Hawaii

2. Agencies and Organizations Consulted

a. Fe<ieral:

(1) Energy R search and Development Administration

b. State:

(1) Universi y of Hawaii Geothermal Project(2) Departme 1t of Land .and Natural Resour~es(3) Department of I-Iea1th . . .(4) Attorney IGeneral IS 'Office .(5) Environmental Center, University of Hawaii

c. . Hawaii County

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(1) Office 0 the Mayor(2) Departme t of Planning(3) Depar~~e t of Research and Development

d. Private Parti s:

(1) Hawaiian Electric Company(2) Hawaii Electric Light Company(3) Kapoho LJnd and Development Company

Project Descripti n

In 1976, a geothe~al 'wel1 was drilled to 6,450 feet on a site locatedin Puna~ about· 21 miles southeast of Hilo. The drilling culminated athree-year projec~, jointly financed by ERDA within the Federal .Government, the Sbate of Hawaii, the County of Hawaii, and with addi­tional support from the Hawaiian Electric Company, to ascertain ifthere was an economically useful geothermal resource along the riftzones radiating frbm Kilauea Volcano. The test well, HGP (for HawaiiGeothermal project~-A' has yielded temperatures and pressures from awater-dominated ge thermal reservoir capable of generating up to 4megawatts of elect ical power, which makes the resource decidedly ofeconomic interest.

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As a continuation of the exploratory drilling project, it is nowproposed to insta 1 a well head generator for thecr-eat t on of e1 ectri ca1energy along with a research facility designed to investigate problemsof reservoir engineering and' geothermal 'power production. The Hawaii ,Electric Light Co intends to purchase much of the power produced,some 3 megawatts, for distribution in its grjd on the Big Island. Theproject will also accommodate R&D field experiments in the use ofgeothermal energy such as the direct application of the hot water toagricultural and industrial processes. Estimated 'capi t al costs of theproject range fro~ $3,100,000 to $5,447,aaa, 'depending on the generatorand other equipme ~ which ERDA agrees to fund.

, The well and the roposedgeotherma1 research facility is on 4.1 acresof land, traverse by the 1955 lava flow, owned by the Kapoho Land andDevelopment Campa (Tax key 1-4-01:2 (por.)). The site is alreadyfenced to limit a cess to the well and the equipment at the wellhead.Since the site is immediately off the Pahoa-PohoikiRoad, there is noproblem of access. There is. a 34.5 Kv overhead transmission line witha power-handling oapacity of approximately 2 MWe in the vicinity of thesite which the HaWaii Electric Light Co. proposes to extend . to thegenerator.

The project site i being leased from the Kapoho Land and Development Co.

4. Project' Organizatipn ,

The project will bk conducted' under the direction of th~ HGP-A Develop­ment· Group (HGP-A/' G) made up of representatives of the State of HawaiiDepartment of Plan ing and Economic Development (the lead agency for thegroup); the County of Hawaii, the University of Hawaii (the HawaiiGeothermal Project, and the Hawaii Electric Light Co~ (HELCa).

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Design and install tion of the geothermal research .facility will beaccomplished with tthe Research Corporation of the University of Hawaii(RCUH) serving as dministrative agency. Operation of the generatorwill probably be b HELCa; RCUH will manage the research and testfacil ity. '

5. Public Polic

A major purpose of the project is to further understanding of geothermalresources on the I land of Hawaii and to encourage their developmentas a means of redu ing Hawaii's present dependence on i.mported 'petroleum.A related purpose s to stimulate development of an energy base for a , .more diversified l ,cal economy.

5. Potential Si nific nce of Pro'ect

The immediate econ mic impact of the project is limited; three megawattswill add only a ti y increment to the power supply and productivity ofthe Big Island. A a research and development facility, however, theproject may be of ritical importance to geothermal development inHawaii as it: hel Ws determine the quantity and qua1ity 'of the geothermal

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resource at punJ; works out applications to that resource of existingand new techno1 dgy; and demonstrates the application of geothermalresources to a ~ari ety of economic uses. The results may be signi­ficant environm~nta1ly, as well as economically, by stimulating thedevelopment of 1n indigenous energy source which is less pollutingor less dangeros than the alternatives which may otherr'Jise beadopted, namely continued use of oil, introduction of coal, orconstruction of nuclear reactors to power Hawaii's electrical energysystems.

7. Environmental Se tin

The project is i a relatively unpopulated section of Puna, some fourmiles from the n arest center of settlement at Pahoa. Puna SugarCompany's neares land is about three miles to the west; there is alarge papaya grO~ing area approximately two miles to the east. Asubdivision lies nearer to the east and across the highway to thesouth, but only ne house is within a radius of one-half mile; withinone mile of th~ ite there are appro~imately a dozen scattered houses.

. I .. - .. - _. - . .. _._. . . .... . . . - . : .-The site is covered with .aa , Ieva from a recent .C1.955), flow and. withthe vegetation c~mmon to such areas: lichen, ferns, ohia 1ehuasaplings, some w11d orchids, nutgrass and other grasses, and a fewcoconut palms. Tree ferns and a var1~ty of other ground covers, noneof them rare or ¢f much economic value, are found further off, withina mile radius. The Lava Tree State Park, about three-fourths of amile towards Pahoa to the west, is of special interest bothscientifically atd as a visitor site . ' .

No rare or endangered species of plants, animals, or birds were found.in biological studies. A survey for archeological sites near theproject also yie ded negative findings. There are no . potable watersources within s veral miles of the project site; the nearest wells .have been and wi 1 continue to .be monitored to ascertain .i f thegeothermal well as any effects on the ground water supp1 ies of Puna ;no effects have een found. .

As is true of mu h of the Puna District, the area near HGP-A receivesrelatively high mounts 6f S02 and H2S from th~ fumeroles in and .around the 'Hawai ~ Volcanoes National Park when the winds blow fromthe Park area, s me 25 miles to the west. As in other geothermal areaselsewhere in the world, the air, water and soil · in Puna contain above­average quantiti s of mercury, but these are not significantly added 'to by the operation of the well.

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a. Witho~t proper safeguards, the environment could be poll uted by__-,,-ulJITJ..ufrl e~-O.Q . · frol1L.-the.....wellhead -generato~and . by. .the-srnell -of __. _

H2S.v:nte~ inlo the atmosphere fr~m the well operation. (Actual '_ to~J q t.Y .Js... n t a_factor.) _. ... . ._. _ . . __ .._ __' " .._ . ._..

8.

b.

c.

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Without adequlte security measures, the project could be anattractive nuisance, dangerous to persons blundering into theproducti on-experimenta1 faci 1i ty 0 , .

Visually, the chief impact of the installation will be a coolingtower, needed to condense the vapor emitted by the generator.

9. Impacts Which Do Not Offer Significant Problems

a. Installation o-·the wellhead generator and equipment for testingother applica ions of · the geothermal fluid"will not take long, norrequire new ro ds or other incursions on the adjacent land.

b.

c.

10.

Removal of eff uent hot water is not a problem because (i) the rateof disch~rge i relatively small ·-- some 60 gallons per minuteand (ii) the cOnder cover ·and lava underneath are frigh1y P9rousoHence, the effiuent will be airected to settling basins within thefenced-off proOectarea, where it will percolate through the lava .to the reservo lor below. Since the geothermal fluid is high insilica, the ba~ins will be back-hoed as they are coated over, torestore porosity.

Since only a f~W supervisory and custodial employees will bestationed at t~e project and the numbers of scientists/techniciansusing the research facility will not be great at any time, problemsof housing and associated infrastructure needs will not arise,except for ins alling a cesspool for waste disposal. The site maybecome a stop for tour buses, but it is not planned to admit casualvisitors into the p~oject area, which is protected by a high chainfence. There I S room for off-road parking.

d. Since the intake of the geothermal well is far below the level ofground water aryd since the effluent will nowhere approach any waterwell, the operation of the geothermal wel l vdoes not impact on theground water sJpply. Water from the rain catchment systems ofhouses samPledJ within five miles of the site yielded no detectableamounts of met 1s, H2S or other. undesirable elements emanating fromthe well... I . 0 • • •

Measures to Mltlgate Potentlal Adverse Imoacts of the ProJect

a. Noise should nsince the steathe entire genoccasions whenare carried onlevels no greaof the generatreduce noise.

t be a problem when the generator is in operation,from the well will be piped to the turbines and

rator unit is enclosed in a structure. On thosethe flow is diverted while maintenance operationsa set of mufflers will hold down the decibels to

than those . now experienced prior to installationFans in the cooling tower will be balanced to

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b.

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IScrubbing equipment will be installed to reduce the level of H2Sin emissions from the generator well below the health hazardrange to a le 1el where it ;s not a nuisance.

c. Wood fencing and landscaping will somewhat reduce the visualimpact of the installation on the grey-green landscape of the

. lava fields.

11. Alternative Sites

The site for the GP-A well was selected by geophysicists as the mostpromising of the and available for drilling to reach a geothermalreservoir. Given the placement of the well, the research and demon­stration facility must be immediately adjacent, for it would be .costly,technically inefficient, and environmentally disruptive to pipe thehot water from th well any great distance.

12. Determination of eed for E.l.S.

Because this proj ct is being conducted by· State agencies, and becauseit is intended to stimulate. a new energy development of potentiallygreat effect, it is determlned that an Environmental Impact Statementshould be prepared, even though the direct effects of the project onthe environment ahe deemed to be minor. This statement, therefore, isbeing submitted as a Preparation Notice for the E.l.S.

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:1) DUA~E KA;\l:lI.-\, .: :~ .; Dcrpul, Ilirt:clor

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February 7, 1978

HERBERT-T. MATA YOSllI;'i ( ; J 7 :\10..",

SID:'<iEY M. H IKEOl'~(,lor

. : I .~: :1' JNING DEPARTlvIENT

I ~TREET • H!LO. HAWAU 1,)6720 '....: ....:....::.::.:

COUNTY OFHAWAII

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Dear Property Owner: TMK: / - l-j - 0/ ; t-j ) - "3 - LJ Lj:..5-I

Special Permit ApplicationKapoho, Puna, Hawaii

x Ma Ke 1-4-01: ortion of 2

You are hereby otified that . a request for a special permitto allow the establi hment of a geothermal research facility andto conduct flow test on approximately 4 acres of land situatedwithin the State Lan Use Agricultural District has been submittedby the petitioner, S ate of Hawaii Department of Planning andEconomic Development.

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The property in olved is located about one mile makai ofLava Tree State Par on the east side of Pohoiki Road, Kapoho,Puna, Hawaii.

A public hearin on the subject among others will be heldbeginning at 7:00 p , I . on Thursday, February 23, 1978, in theCouncilroom, County uilding, South Hilo, Hawaii.

You are invited to comment on the application at the hearingor submit written co ments prior to the hearing date.

('innc(\.elY, .

~J~~eDirector

smn

Enclosure

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