The Natural Energy Laboratory of Hawaii Authority (''NELHA'') administers the Hawaii Ocean Science and Technology Park (HOST Park) in the U.S. state of Hawaii. ''NELHA'' was founded in 1974. At , HOST Park is a state-subsidized industrial park for incubator and marginal commercial ventures. Part of the subsidy is provided by writing off tenant debt.''NELHA'' also administers a small site, , in Puna on the eastern side of the Island of Hawaii for geothermal research. The original mission was for research into the uses of

deep ocean water Deep ocean water (DOW) is the name for cold, salty water found in the deep sea, starting at below the surface of Earth's oceans. Ocean water differs in temperature and salinity. Warm surface water is generally saltier than the cooler deep or pol ...

ocean thermal energy conversion Ocean thermal energy conversion (OTEC) is a renewable energy technology that harnesses the thermocline, temperature difference between the photic zone, warm surface waters of the ocean and the deep sea, cold depths to run a heat engine to produce ...

(OTEC)

renewable energy Renewable energy (also called green energy) is energy made from renewable resource, renewable natural resources that are replenished on a human lifetime, human timescale. The most widely used renewable energy types are solar energy, wind pow ...

production and in

aquaculture Aquaculture (less commonly spelled aquiculture), also known as aquafarming, is the controlled cultivation ("farming") of aquatic organisms such as fish, crustaceans, mollusks, algae and other organisms of value such as aquatic plants (e.g. Nelu ...

. It later added research into sustainable uses of natural energy sources such as

solar energy Solar energy is the radiant energy from the Sun's sunlight, light and heat, which can be harnessed using a range of technologies such as solar electricity, solar thermal energy (including solar water heating) and solar architecture. It is a ...

. Its administration offices are located in the HOST Park

Keahole Point Keāhole Point is the westernmost point of the island of Hawaii. The Kona International Airport was moved here from directly north of the town of Kailua-Kona in 1970, when the previous smaller airstrip was converted into the Old Kona Airport Sta ...

in the North Kona District. The entrance is on the

Hawaii Belt Road The Hawaii Belt Road is a modern name for the Māmalahoa Highway and consists of Hawaii state Routes 11, 19, and 190 that encircle the Hawaii (island), Island of Hawaii. The southern section, between Hilo, Hawaii, Hilo and Kailua-Kona, Hawaii, K ...

at coordinates , just south of the

Kona International Airport Ellison Onizuka Kona International Airport at Keāhole is the primary airport on the Hawaii (island), Island of Hawaiʻi, located in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii, Kailua-Kona, Hawaii, United States. The airport serves leeward (western) Hawaii (island), ...

. The main administration office is in the 4 acre research campus at the end of the road along the coastline on Keahole Point. NELHA 1

The laboratory was founded in 1974 with , associated with the

University of Hawaii A university () is an educational institution, institution of tertiary education and research which awards academic degrees in several Discipline (academia), academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase , which roughly ...

. Large pipelines pump cold sea water from a depth of . For three months in 1979, a small amount of electricity was generated. Almost $250M was spent on Ocean thermal energy conversion, but by 1991, the research shifted to other areas. The adjacent Science and Technology Park was merged into the facility, expanding it to . A

neutrino A neutrino ( ; denoted by the Greek letter ) is an elementary particle that interacts via the weak interaction and gravity. The neutrino is so named because it is electrically neutral and because its rest mass is so small ('' -ino'') that i ...

detector was partially constructed in the 1990s called

Project DUMAND The DUMAND Project (Deep Underwater Muon And Neutrino Detector Project) was a proposed underwater neutrino telescope to be built in the Pacific Ocean, off the shore of the island of Hawaii, five kilometers beneath the surface. It would have includ ...

. After four decades, NELHA is well on track to fulfilling its mission as an engine for economic development in Hawaii and the economic impact generated by HOST Park is approaching $150M annually with the creation of over 600 jobs statewide. In 2002, were leased to a commercial company which filters and bottles the water for sale in Japan.Natural Energy Lab ready for fresh start with DAGS
in

Honolulu Advertiser ''The Honolulu Advertiser'' was a daily newspaper published in Honolulu, Hawaii. At the time publication ceased on June 6, 2010, it was the largest daily newspaper in Hawaii. It published daily with special Sunday and Internet editions. ''The ...

, May 31, 2009 Makai Ocean Engineering, working with

Lockheed Martin The Lockheed Martin Corporation is an American Arms industry, defense and aerospace manufacturer with worldwide interests. It was formed by the merger of Lockheed Corporation with Martin Marietta on March 15, 1995. It is headquartered in North ...

, restarted OTEC research."Deep Pipelines for Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion"
on Makai Ocean Engineering web site

Aquaculture Aquaculture (less commonly spelled aquiculture), also known as aquafarming, is the controlled cultivation ("farming") of aquatic organisms such as fish, crustaceans, mollusks, algae and other organisms of value such as aquatic plants (e.g. Nelu ...

algae biofuel Algae fuel, algal biofuel, or algal oil is an alternative to liquid fossil fuels that use algae as the source of energy-rich oils. Also, algae fuels are an alternative to commonly known biofuel sources, such as corn and sugarcane. When made fro ...

solar thermal energy Solar thermal energy (STE) is a form of energy and a technology for harnessing solar energy to generate thermal energy for use in Industrial sector, industry, and in the residential and commercial sectors. Solar thermal collectors are classified ...

, solar concentrating, and

wind power Wind power is the use of wind energy to generate useful work. Historically, wind power was used by sails, windmills and windpumps, but today it is mostly used to generate electricity. This article deals only with wind power for electricity ge ...

are some of the 40 tenants.Revisiting NELHA
in

West Hawaii Today ''West Hawaii Today'' is a Kailua-Kona, Hawai'i based daily newspaper. It is owned and published by Oahu Publications Inc., a subsidiary of Black Press. History ''West Hawaii Today'' began in 1962 as a special weekly edition of ''Hilo Tribune ...

, April 26, 2009

References

External links

Natural Energy Laboratory of Hawaii
Official web site
Friends of NELHA
Web site describing the Hawaii Gateway Energy Center which is NELHA's visitor center {{DEFAULTSORT:Natural Energy Laboratory Of Hawaii Authority Energy research institutes Buildings and structures in Hawaii County, Hawaii Research institutes in Hawaii Research institutes established in 1974 1974 establishments in Hawaii

See also

References

External links