Geothermal resources on public lands: oversight hearing before the Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources of the Committee on Resources

OCLC Number: (OCoLC)50060617 Subject: Geothermal resources -- Government policy -- United States. Excerpt: ...the answers to these questions. Wyoming isn't known as a hotbed of geothermal energy, except for the geothermal features of Yellowstone National Park--which, of course, I do not advocate tapping for geothermal power. But I feel strongly that this resource cannot be overlooked where it does make sense economically to develop it. I think it needs to be a part of the overall energy policy, the long-term energy policy that we want to develop to keep the United States more secure as a nation and to avoid the boom- and-bust cycle of energy that we go through. So now I recognize the Ranking Member, Mr. Kind, for his opening statement. [The prepared statement of Mrs. Cubin follows:] Statement of The Honorable Barbara Cubin, Chairman, Subcommittee on Energy & Mineral Resources This is the fifth Subcommittee hearing on issues concerning energy supplies from our public lands. We have focused upon fossil fuels in previous hearings, but today our topic is the discussion of geothermal energy found on our public lands. We would like to explore the questions of how much of this resource is geologically available to tap; how much may be economic to do so for electricity generation or direct heat uses; what, if any, regulatory or statutory constraints are preventing such development? The Geothermal Steam Act of 1970 authorizes the Secretary of the Interior to competitively lease public lands for geothermal energy development. As with oil, gas and coal resources, this authority extends to U.S. Forest Service-administered lands as well, with the consent of the Department of Agriculture. This Act requires the Secretary to levy a royalty of between 10% and 15% of the value of the geothermal resource, which is a higher rate than the typical onshore oil and gas lease. Furthermore, when geothermal steam d...