Geothermal Capacity
The Plain has a high level of agricultural development and houses the majority of Idaho’s population; however, it also contains one of the United States' greatest potential sources for renewable energy in the form of geothermal heat. The Snake River Plain (SRP) was formed from successive volcanic eruptions of the Yellowstone hotspot as it moved beneath the North American Plate from what is now Eastern Oregon to its current location in northest Wyoming. The basaltic plain that resulted still retains a large amount of surface-level heat flow; it allows Idaho to be one of the 5 states in the United States that currently have functional geothermal electricity generation. While geothermal energy is accessible with current techniques at shallow depths due to the presence of the Snake River Aquifer and a highly fractured basement, the much vaster energy potential at depth is currently locked away within dry rock classified as Enhanced Geothermal Sources (EGS).
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