Fostering Community Engagement in Rico’s Geothermal Project
This post is adapted from an article published by Allyn Svoboda, and revisits information shared at the Rico Geothermal Coalition’s community outreach brunch late last year.
On a sunny Saturday morning last December, residents gathered at Rico Town Hall to learn from Rico Geothermal Coalition project stakeholders and experts about geology, geothermal energy technologies, and plans for the Rico project.
Teal Stetson-Lee, Community Liaison for the Rico Geothermal Project, shared that Rico has some of the highest hydrothermal potential in the state. Colorado School of Mines professor Masami Nakagawa and students studied the resource from 2009 - 2018.
Teal formed the Rico Geothermal Coalition consisting of six local residents, Teverra LLC, and Western Colorado University. "We're building on all of the data that's already been collected, and continuing to move this process forward to find out if geothermal solutions is something the town of Rico may be interested in."
Community engagement efforts by Rico Geothermal Coalition will include educational events and materials, presentations to Rico Board of Trustees, and a community survey with intent to include everybody. "My job is to connect with all of you and hear your voice and make sure that's engaged in the whole process,” Teal said.
Rico geothermal project basics
During the event, Teal and others explained that geothermal is a "cascading resource" which may be used for multiple scenarios. The first application is a closed loop system to heat buildings. If geothermal resource heat capacity is sufficient, it could also be used to heat a greenhouse, a hot springs pool, or for snow-melting. "Localized energy" goals and benefits include reduced heating costs, employment opportunities, greenhouse gas emissions reduction, and cleaner air.
Teal emphasized transparency as a key tenet of the project:
"It's 100% grassroots, community-lead. Our intention is to make use of our hydrothermal resource for the benefit of the community. The Rico Geothermal Coalition is folded under the Rico Land Collaborative nonprofit. The nonprofit structure allows us to apply for grants and funds, and also to build a more expansive network. We will be interacting directly with the community for your input and your feedback. We would like to know how the community wants to utilize this resource that we have."
Project funding and scope
In May 2024, the Colorado Energy Office selected Rico to receive a $100,000 grant consisting of federal Inflation Reduction Act funds for "infrastructure." The Rico Center also provided a grant to assist with creating the Rico Geothermal Coalition website.
The Phase 1 scoping study began in October 2024 and is set to last 18 months. Teverra, a clean energy technology company, will map the subsurface hydrothermal reservoir (which has never been done before), providing a more comprehensive picture compared to previous research, and designating where to access the resource. This will help the Rico Geothermal Coalition assess the potential to create a district heating thermal energy network (TEN) for supplying buildings and residences with hot water and heat. A hybrid TEN may include heat pumps at buildings and residences.
Stay tuned here for more knowledge sharing from our December 2024 event.
Are you a Rico resident? We’d love to hear from you. Please take our Rico Geothermal Survey, an effort to gauge interest in using geothermal resources for a district heating system.
