Production history for the State of Idaho Capitol Mall geothermal system 1983-1994

Journal Article · Thu Feb 01 04:00:00 EST 1996 · Geo-Heat Center Quarterly Bulletin

OSTI ID:245418

Neely, K W ^[1]

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1. Idaho Department of Water Resources, Boise, ID (United States)

The State of Idaho Capitol Mall geothermal system has been in operation since 1982. The system extracts geothermal water to supply about ninety percent of the heat required for nine buildings in the downtown Boise area including the State Capitol. The cost savings over natural gas heating are estimated to be $400,000 per year. The primary components of the system are: (1) a production well, (2) heat exchangers, (3) underground delivery and collection pipes, and (4) an injection well. Production, temperature and system operation data have been recorded manually on Daily Logs since May, 1983. In 1991, the Department of Administration-Building Services made this data available through computer Trend Logs which capture information every six hours. The Capitol Mall geothermal system is located within the borders of an administrative district called the Boise Front Low Temperature Geothermal Resource Ground Water Management Area (GWMA) in Ada County of southwestern Idaho. The GWMA was established by the Idaho Department of Water Resources (IDWR) in 1987 in response to declining water levels in geothermal wells along the edge of the Boise foothills. In addition to the Capitol Mall system, the other major geothermal users in the Boise area are: (1) City of Boise, (2) Veterans Administration, and (3) Boise Warm Springs Water District. Collectively, these four users extract about 600 million gallons of geothermal water annually. Capitol Mall geothermal production accounts for about 160 to 205 million gallons of water annually. The supply temperature for the Capitol Mall system is currently about 155{degrees} Fahrenheit.

• OSTI ID: 245418
• Journal Information: Geo-Heat Center Quarterly Bulletin, Journal Name: Geo-Heat Center Quarterly Bulletin Journal Issue: 1 Vol. 17; ISSN GCQBDW; ISSN 0276-1084
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

15 GEOTHERMAL ENERGY
COST RECOVERY
GEOTHERMAL ENERGY
GEOTHERMAL HEATING
GEOTHERMAL HEATING SYSTEMS
GEOTHERMAL RESOURCES
GOVERNMENT BUILDINGS
IDAHO
PERFORMANCE