A big deal in alternative energy happened on Tuesday when Secretary of the Interior, Ken Salazar, announced two new solar energy projects to be installed on public lands. This is the first, after years of efforts, that solar projects like these have been permitted on public land.
A Chevron owned project will build solar PV panels on 422 acres in the Lucerne Valley of San Bernardino County in Southern California. The project will have a "green screen" designed to camouflage its appearance and to keep dust down. The 45 megawatt project will also create 48 jobs, according to Chevron and BLM.
The other project in the Imperial Valley belongs to Tessera. the Arizona based company will construct a solar dish array on 6360 acres the BLM oversees in Imperial County. Tessera and BLM anticipate the 709 megawatt project will generate nearly 900 new jobs.
Environmental organizations like Defenders of Wildlife and The Wilderness Society are jumping onboard, as is the Natural Resources Defence Council's Johanna Wald, who stated: “Chevron’s Lucerne Valley solar project is a great example of a project that’s smart from the start. The project fits the bill because, as a result of careful planning up front, its site has high solar potential, is close to existing roads and transmission, and avoids sensitive wildlife areas and other vital natural resources.
"Although the Tessera Solar project site in Imperial Valley met some of NRDC’s criteria, it initially posed resource and technology issues. Today, it serves as an example of what can be accomplished when parties are committed to finding solutions to such issues. During the federal and state reviews Tessera Solar moved the project out of sensitive desert washes, scaling it back to 709-megawatts, to reduce important impacts. Tessera Solar then sat down with NRDC and our conservation partners and agreed to develop the project in two distinct stages and other measures, all of which went above and beyond the requirements imposed by state and federal regulators."
Check out Bob Difley's eBooks at RVbookstore.com
A Chevron owned project will build solar PV panels on 422 acres in the Lucerne Valley of San Bernardino County in Southern California. The project will have a "green screen" designed to camouflage its appearance and to keep dust down. The 45 megawatt project will also create 48 jobs, according to Chevron and BLM.
The other project in the Imperial Valley belongs to Tessera. the Arizona based company will construct a solar dish array on 6360 acres the BLM oversees in Imperial County. Tessera and BLM anticipate the 709 megawatt project will generate nearly 900 new jobs.
Environmental organizations like Defenders of Wildlife and The Wilderness Society are jumping onboard, as is the Natural Resources Defence Council's Johanna Wald, who stated: “Chevron’s Lucerne Valley solar project is a great example of a project that’s smart from the start. The project fits the bill because, as a result of careful planning up front, its site has high solar potential, is close to existing roads and transmission, and avoids sensitive wildlife areas and other vital natural resources.
"Although the Tessera Solar project site in Imperial Valley met some of NRDC’s criteria, it initially posed resource and technology issues. Today, it serves as an example of what can be accomplished when parties are committed to finding solutions to such issues. During the federal and state reviews Tessera Solar moved the project out of sensitive desert washes, scaling it back to 709-megawatts, to reduce important impacts. Tessera Solar then sat down with NRDC and our conservation partners and agreed to develop the project in two distinct stages and other measures, all of which went above and beyond the requirements imposed by state and federal regulators."
Check out Bob Difley's eBooks at RVbookstore.com
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