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Rico geothermal coalition outlines plan for monitoring well to evaluate local resource
Summary
The Rico Geothermal Coalition briefed trustees on a Phase 2 plan to drill and monitor a single well this fall to collect rock, hydraulic and geochemical data to test a suspected tributary geothermal reservoir north of town; coalition asked the town to consider a future permitting role to preserve community access.
Teal, speaking for the Rico Geothermal Coalition, told the Board on June 17 the coalition has completed a scoping study and town‑wide geologic mapping and is moving into Phase 2: a monitoring well to collect lithology, structural, hydraulic and geochemistry data that will indicate whether a deeper reservoir north of Rico can support future development.
Teal said the coalition has identified a preferred monitoring location on private land (Dave Boleson) near an existing artesian borehole and plans to drill in October or November to avoid winter ground freeze. The monitoring program, Teal said, would take about one to two months of data collection and would help distinguish whether the local resource is a tributary geothermal system — which is permitted through the Colorado Division of Water Resources — or a deeper, nontributary reservoir managed under the state’s Energy Carbon Management Commission process.
Teal urged the board to consider positioning the town, or a community cooperative, as the next permitting applicant if the coalition determines a production well is warranted. "As we gain this data ... the coalition wants to strongly encourage the town or, possibly, a public cooperative representing the community to be the next permitting applicant," Teal said. That approach, Teal added, would help preserve community access under Colorado water‑rights principles of prior appropriation.
Trustees asked about site selection, monitoring length and maintenance responsibilities; Teal said the coalition can complete a monitoring well within current funds and that longer‑term permitting or production would require additional fundraising and potential community arrangements. The board agreed to post coalition materials to the town website and signaled interest in receiving the coalition’s economic model when ready.
Next steps: the coalition will pursue permitting steps, coordinate with the Department of Water Resources on monitoring‑well permitting, and return with data and an economic model for further board consideration.
