USA, Hawaii:

Bills Could Impact Puna Geothermal Plant Expansion (West Hawaii Today)

Does Hawaii County’s night-time drilling ban apply to Puna Geothermal Venture?

That’s a question the County Council will grapple with again next week as the geothermal power plant in Pohoiki starts another around-the-clock drilling project to build a new well.

Puna Councilman Greggor Ilagan introduced two resolutions on the issue that he said will be considered Feb. 4.

One requests the 38-megawatt plant to comply with the ban, adopted in 2012 following its last drilling project, and drill only between the hours of 7 a.m. and 7 p.m.

The other asks the county’s attorneys to take the issue to court so a judge can decide if, in fact, the law applies to the county’s only geothermal power plant.

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