An Overview of the Hawaiian Geothermal Resources Assessment Program

Abstract

The Geothermal Resource Assessment Program of the Hawaii Institute of Geophysics began an evaluation of the geothermal resources of the State of Hawaii in February 1978, The first phase of the assessment program consisted of the compilation and evaluation of existing geological, geophysical, and geochemical data having relevance to a potential geothermal resource, The data acquired suggested that twenty separate locations on the five major islands had some evidence far a geothermal resource. During the second phase of the program thirteen of the identified potential geothermal areas were studied using a variety of geophysical and geochemical techniques. The results of the surveys strongly substantiated the existance of a geothermal resource in four areas, provided moderately positive evidence in three areas, and gave contradictory or negative data in five others,