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Geothermal Water Use: Life Cycle Water Consumption, Water Resource Assessment, and Water Policy Framework

Published by Argonne National Laboratory | Department of Energy | Metadata Last Checked: January 27, 2026 | Last Modified: 2017-06-22T17:45:13Z
This report examines life cycle water consumption for various geothermal technologies to better understand factors that affect water consumption across the life cycle (e.g., power plant cooling, belowground fluid losses) and to assess the potential water challenges that future geothermal power generation projects may face. Previous reports in this series quantified the life cycle freshwater requirements of geothermal power-generating systems, explored operational and environmental concerns related to the geochemical composition of geothermal fluids, and assessed future water demand by geothermal power plants according to growth projections for the industry. This report seeks to extend those analyses by including EGS flash, both as part of the life cycle analysis and water resource assessment. A regional water resource assessment based upon the life cycle results is also presented. Finally, the legal framework of water with respect to geothermal resources in the states with active geothermal development is also analyzed.

Resources

8 resources available

  • Report.pdf

    PDF
  • Table 1 - GETEM EGS Scenarios.xlsx

    XLSX
  • Table 2 - GETEM Hydrothermal Scenarios.xlsx

    XLSX
  • Table 3 - Life Cycle Water Consumption Summary for EGS Scenarios.xlsx

    XLSX
  • Table 4 - Life Cycle Water Consumption Summary for Hydrothermal Scenarios.xlsx

    XLSX
  • Table 5 - Regional Water Resource Assessment Scenario Parameters.xlsx

    XLSX
  • Table 6 - Categories of Saline Water.xlsx

    XLSX
  • Table 7 - State-Level Geothermal Water Management Definitions Laws and Principles.xlsx

    XLSX

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