Workforce GeoTribe from the College of Oklahoma presents at their geothermal stakeholder engagement occasion (supply: College of Oklahoma)
Following their Geothermal Collegiate Competitors win, a staff from the College of Oklahoma confirmed their geothermal greenhouse challenge at a group occasion.
A bunch of scholars from the College of Oklahoma who not too long ago gained first place within the Technical Observe of the 2023 Geothermal Collegiate Competitors of US Division of Power held a group occasion to current their proposed design for a geothermal greenhouse for the Osage Nation in Pawhuska, Oklahoma.
Workforce GeoTribe – consisting of Cesar Vivas, Nabe Konate, Jose Aramendiz, Gurban Hasanov, and Vagif Mammadzada – has designed a system of geothermal wells to warmth and funky the Osage Nation’s 40,000-square-foot greenhouse, supporting efforts for native meals sovereignty. As prize for the competitors, the staff was awarded $10,000 to fund a stakeholder engagement occasion to current the challenge to the group.
The greenhouse was established in the course of the COVID-19 pandemic when there was a breakdown within the Tribe’s meals system. That is significantly essential for making certain produce year-round in an space that’s acknowledged as a meals desert.
“The Harvestland greenhouse was created to supply the Osage Nation entry to vegatables and fruits, particularly in the course of the meals scarcity in the course of the pandemic,” mentioned Jose Aramendiz, a Ph.D. candidate in petroleum engineering at The College of Oklahoma. “Serving to the greenhouse be self-sufficient may result in minimize vitality prices, permitting redirection of funds to extend the advantages the greenhouse offers to the group.”
A geothermal useful resource evaluation finished by the staff signifies that there’s sufficient warmth at 2000 ft beneath the floor to supply heating and cooling for the greenhouse and a close-by fish farm. Utilization of close by inactive oil and fuel wells was additionally thought of, however these had been discovered to be too outdated and broken. Nevertheless, subsurface info from these wells can nonetheless be helpful for designing the geothermal system.
“In our expertise, the stakeholders had been a key a part of our success,” mentioned Konate, College of Oklahoma Ph.D. candidate and Workforce GeoTribe member. “Stakeholder engagement is necessary as a result of it aligns folks with widespread curiosity in working collectively to develop geothermal vitality.”
“A very powerful facet was listening to the Tribal group’s previous experiences, considerations, and recommendation,” mentioned Aramendiz, additionally a Ph.D. candidate at The College of Oklahoma and a member of Workforce GeoTribe. “Studying from them and integrating their beliefs into our idea was key for our group to grasp how we may collaborate respectfully.”
The subsequent Geothermal Collegiate Competitors will open for registration in August 2024. Join the competitors e-newsletter to maintain up to date.
