Canby District Heating Project EA

In Search of Truth (I'SOT)

RMT'S ROLE:

RMT prepared an EA and Biological Assessment and a subsequent EA/IS for the DOE for the evaluation of environmental effects associated with the construction and ongoing use of a direct use geothermal heating system for the In Search of Truth (I'SOT) community located in Canby, California. The project involved construction of new buildings in an already established community; installation of a direct use district heating system involving pre-existing and new geothermal wells; and construction and operation of a carbon filtration system, power generation facility, cooling system, pipelines, and transmission tie-in. The project initially involved a 5,400-foot pipeline that discharged filtered geothermal fluids into the Pit River; however, due to water quality concerns, the pipeline was later proposed for decommissioning.

SIGNIFICANT ISSUES:

The significant environmental issues addressed in the EA and EA/IS included:

• Possible loss of productivity of the geothermal resource
• Increase in impervious surfaces from new building construction
• Possible groundwater contamination from leaks in the underground discharge pipeline
• Increased levels of mercury, boron, and arsenic in the Pit River
• The bioaccumulation of mercury in bald eagles from consumption of Pit River fish
• Releases of non-condensable gas containing small amounts of hydrogen sulfide during well testing
• Increases in operational noise from the power plant and cooling system
• Changes to the character and volume of wastewater as a result of power plant operation