Geothermal Energy

The last couple of weeks, I have been reading and hearing about geothermal energy and how it could be the energy solution that we have been looking for. My interest peaked this weekend when I drove by a development in the lakes region advertising there new homes "Ask us about our geothermal package". I later went on the web to get some validity to this
concept. Geothermal energy is the energy right below our feet. Deep below us, the earth's core is constantly generating heat. This heat melts rock, steams water, builds up pressure, I think you get the picture. This practice of tapping into this energy has been used for years. Iceland's main power supply is from geothermal energy. Research has shown that drilling deep enough into these sources, harnessing the hot water (700 degrees in some cases) is the safest and cleanest form of energy production and use.
On the web site geothermal.marin.org, it covers the benefits of this reliable and what seems to be an endless supply of energy. It is a clean source of energy, there are no fossil fuels involved in the production of electricity from geothermal techniques. It is usually a closed water system, steam comes up from the ground, runs turbines and generates electricity. There a no by-products, no emissions, just clean energy. Environmentally, it is easy on the land. Geothermal installations don't require damming of rivers or harvesting of forests and there are no mine shafts, tunnels, open pits, waste heaps or oil spills. The energy is reliable, the system runs on its own, it fuels power for itself, it is not interrupted by power failures, weather patterns or any outside forces that could disrupt its operation. The system is extremely flexible, when demand grows production can increase without impacting its size, unlike wind and solar farms, these systems need to get larger to keep up with demand. It can also help in areas where energy production does not exist. It can create jobs, create energy and help countries that are burdened with poor energy programs.
Why isn't everyone doing this then? Is it political? Are oil lobbyist hindering its production? I explored this as well. Geothermal energy is used all over the world. This country has hundreds of plants set up all over from California to Idaho. Communities are probably getting this form of energy and don't even know it. I would hate to make conclusions, but the one theme that I was getting from the articles on geothermal is that we consume to much power. In 1999, North America’s (Mexico, USA, Canada) per capita energy consumption was about 4 ½ times greater than the world average. North America’s per capita energy consumption is forecast to increase nearly 10 percent by 2010. To me, as a environmentalist, these are reliable facts that should concern all of us, for us to change and have a causal relationship in this energy topic, changing our consumption habits will in turn change our need for power.