Plant X
Encyclopedia
Plant X is a steam-electric power plant located in the partially vegetated sandhills
south of the West Texas
town of Earth
in Lamb County, Texas. It is owned and operated by Southwestern Public Service Co, a subsidiary of Xcel Energy
.
When the President of Southwestern Public Service Company announced that the company planned to build a new power plant on the high plains
of the Llano Estacado
, William L. Broadhurst of the Division of Ground Water of the Geological Survey
recommended that they build it in the Sand Hills area of Lamb County. The USGS groundwater program had already determined that there was an unusually large saturated thickness of freshwater in the Ogallala Aquifer
beneath the Sand Hills. As a result, Plant X was located where Broadhurst suggested.
Plant X is primarily powered by natural gas
, although fuel oil
can be used as an alternative. It has four operating units: Unit 1 was brought on-line in 1952 and is capable of producing 48 MW; Unit 2 was added in 1953 and has a production capability of 102 MW; Unit 3 was constructed in 1955 and is rated at 103 MW, and Unit 4 is a 189 MW unit, added in 1964. The total power production capability of Plant X is 442 MW.
Nevertheless, Plant X still "consumes huge quantities of groundwater." Brune, G.M. 1981. Springs of Texas. Fort Worth, TX: Branch-Smith, p. 284. The generation of steam, the discharge of steam to the atmosphere, and the evaporation of water from massive cooling towers results in a significant extraction of groundwater from the Ogallala Aquifer
. The combination of groundwater pumping for power production and water extraction by irrigated agriculture has caused groundwater levels beneath the Sand Hills to drop appreciably. As a result, most natural springs in the area have stopped flowing and spring-fed lakes, such as Spring Lake and Soda Lake, have dried completely.
Sandhill
A sandhill is a type of ecological community or xeric wildfire-maintained ecosystem. It is not the same as a sand dune. It features very short fire return intervals, one to five years. Without fire, sandhills undergo ecological succession and become more oak dominated.Entisols are the typical...
south of the West Texas
West Texas
West Texas is a vernacular term applied to a region in the southwestern quadrant of the United States that primarily encompasses the arid and semi-arid lands in the western portion of the state of Texas....
town of Earth
Earth, Texas
-History:Earth was established by William E. Halsell, who laid out the townsite in 1924. Originally Halsell named the town Fairlawn but in 1925 it was renamed Earth when it was learned that there was already a town in Texas by the name of Fairlawn. In order to find a new name the townspeople sent...
in Lamb County, Texas. It is owned and operated by Southwestern Public Service Co, a subsidiary of Xcel Energy
Xcel Energy
Xcel Energy, Inc. is a public utility company based in Minneapolis, Minnesota, serving customers in Colorado, Michigan, Minnesota, New Mexico, North Dakota, South Dakota, Texas, and Wisconsin. Primary services are electricity and natural gas...
.
History
At the time Plant X was being designed, power plants were usually named after their location. During the initial stages of the design process, no location had been selected, so engineers referred to the generating station simply as “Plant X” and the name stuck.When the President of Southwestern Public Service Company announced that the company planned to build a new power plant on the high plains
High Plains (United States)
The High Plains are a subregion of the Great Plains mostly in the Western United States, but also partly in the Midwest states of Nebraska, Kansas, and South Dakota, generally encompassing the western part of the Great Plains before the region reaches the Rocky Mountains...
of the Llano Estacado
Llano Estacado
Llano Estacado , commonly known as the Staked Plains, is a region in the Southwestern United States that encompasses parts of eastern New Mexico and northwestern Texas, including the South Plains and parts of the Texas Panhandle...
, William L. Broadhurst of the Division of Ground Water of the Geological Survey
United States Geological Survey
The United States Geological Survey is a scientific agency of the United States government. The scientists of the USGS study the landscape of the United States, its natural resources, and the natural hazards that threaten it. The organization has four major science disciplines, concerning biology,...
recommended that they build it in the Sand Hills area of Lamb County. The USGS groundwater program had already determined that there was an unusually large saturated thickness of freshwater in the Ogallala Aquifer
Ogallala Aquifer
The Ogallala Aquifer, also known as the High Plains Aquifer, is a vast yet shallow underground water table aquifer located beneath the Great Plains in the United States...
beneath the Sand Hills. As a result, Plant X was located where Broadhurst suggested.
Plant X is primarily powered by natural gas
Natural gas
Natural gas is a naturally occurring gas mixture consisting primarily of methane, typically with 0–20% higher hydrocarbons . It is found associated with other hydrocarbon fuel, in coal beds, as methane clathrates, and is an important fuel source and a major feedstock for fertilizers.Most natural...
, although fuel oil
Fuel oil
Fuel oil is a fraction obtained from petroleum distillation, either as a distillate or a residue. Broadly speaking, fuel oil is any liquid petroleum product that is burned in a furnace or boiler for the generation of heat or used in an engine for the generation of power, except oils having a flash...
can be used as an alternative. It has four operating units: Unit 1 was brought on-line in 1952 and is capable of producing 48 MW; Unit 2 was added in 1953 and has a production capability of 102 MW; Unit 3 was constructed in 1955 and is rated at 103 MW, and Unit 4 is a 189 MW unit, added in 1964. The total power production capability of Plant X is 442 MW.
Water use
With regard to water-use efficiency, Plant X was designed to be a "zero-discharge facility," which means no process waters are directly discharged from the plant site. Operating in a semiarid region with a limited water supply, engineers developed a recycling system to reduce water use at Plant X. A pipeline was constructed to send Plant X blowdown water (used water from plant operations) for treatment and recycling at the nearby Tolk Station, a coal-fired power plant located 15 km (9.3 mi) to the west. As a result, the combined water consumption of Plant X and Tolk Station was reduced by about 180 million gallons per year.Nevertheless, Plant X still "consumes huge quantities of groundwater." Brune, G.M. 1981. Springs of Texas. Fort Worth, TX: Branch-Smith, p. 284. The generation of steam, the discharge of steam to the atmosphere, and the evaporation of water from massive cooling towers results in a significant extraction of groundwater from the Ogallala Aquifer
Ogallala Aquifer
The Ogallala Aquifer, also known as the High Plains Aquifer, is a vast yet shallow underground water table aquifer located beneath the Great Plains in the United States...
. The combination of groundwater pumping for power production and water extraction by irrigated agriculture has caused groundwater levels beneath the Sand Hills to drop appreciably. As a result, most natural springs in the area have stopped flowing and spring-fed lakes, such as Spring Lake and Soda Lake, have dried completely.