| Abstract |
The Tendaho geothermal field is one of the geothermal fields in the Ethiopian rift valley that has been explored by deep drilling. Six geothermal wells have been drilled to date, four of which are productive. There is a plan to progress the resource to development in three phases, which includes small scale power plant, deep drilling and medium scale plant. In this report, analysis of the current status of the environment, environmental effects which the proposed development activity may entail and mitigation measures to be taken to reduce impacts to the level of insignificance are discussed The characteristics of the existing environment at Tendaho includes: a flat topography, scarce wildlife, scarce vegetation, arid climate, limited surface water body, un polluted air, natural thermal features, sparse population and poor socio economic condition. Impacts on the environment from deep drilling are predicted to be minimal and short term. Potential impacts of utilization of the resource on the environment are physicaJ, chemical and socio economic. The physical impacts on the geology and the landscape relate to construction activities and abstraction of water from the reservoir. Given the chemical concentration of the geothermal fluids, the risk of contaminating the ground water by waste water disposal is considered low. Air emission during operation will cause no significant contamination of the air, since the gas content of the resource is low. The impacts on the socio economic condition are mainly positive, including a rise in employment opportunities and an indirect stimulation of rural development. All the impacts are mitigatable with careful management of the resource and implementation of appropriate environmental protection measures. |