S3E2: Biden's Plan to Turn the Desert into a Solar Energy Complex
Unveiling the Future of Desert Landscapes: Solar Energy Development and its Environmental Impact
The balance between environmental conservation and the inexorable push for renewable energy development has long been a point of contention. The recent draft proposal by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) underscores this dichotomy, outlining a plan for utility-scale solar energy development across the western United States. In Episode 2 of the third season of 90 Miles from Needles; the Desert Protection Podcast, we delve into the implications and controversies surrounding the BLM’s plan, its potential environmental impact, and the debate on the direction of sustainable energy practices.
Key Takeaways:
The Draft Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (PEIS) from the BLM could significantly alter millions of acres of Western U.S. landscapes.
There's a potential for large-scale solar development across vast tracts of public land, with varying degrees of environmental protections.
Alternative energy solutions, such as rooftop solar, remain underutilized and deserve more significant consideration.
A Sea Change in Solar Energy Policy: The Draft PEIS' Ripple Effect
The BLM's Draft PEIS represents a pivotal moment in environmental policy. It proposes to retire the solar energy zones established in 2012 and introduces a markedly different approach to determining where solar energy development should occur. The document outlines five action alternatives and one no action alternative, with a preferred alternative emphasizing the proximity of solar development to existing or planned transmission lines.
Resource-Based Exclusions: Alternative One
This alternative advocates for a hands-off approach to protected and valuable environmental resources. It sets the tone for the other alternatives by ensuring that areas such as national parks, habitats for endangered species, and lands with wilderness characteristics remain untouched. The conservation-focused intertwining of energy policy with environmental protection under this alternative is a nod to both industry and preservation prioritization.
The first action alternative, which the document calls alternative number one, is resource based exclusions only, and what that means is that all lands are up for grabs in the eleven state planning area on BLM land, except for those specifically excluded.
The Slope and Transmission Proximity Paradigm: Alternatives Two and Three
Expanding from the resource-based exclusions, these alternatives further restrict development on land with over a 10 percent slope and within 10 miles of transmission lines greater than 100 kilovolts. Alternative three, favored by the BLM, targets the heart of industry concerns regarding accessibility to energy infrastructure while keeping hillsides free from development.
Embracing Disturbed Lands: Alternatives Four and Five
Encouraging use of previously disturbed lands underscores a compromise between development and conservation. The push to use lands already impacted by human activity points to a potential mitigation strategy that attempts to align with the principles of reuse and minimal habitat disruption. Nevertheless, the definition of "disturbed" remains a contentious point.
"In the last 15 years of working on solar in the desert… I have seen unbelievably beautiful, ecologically valuable landscapes described as disturbed lands."
The Broader Implications: Environmental, Cultural, and Economic Impacts
The Draft PEIS does not simply outline where solar development could happen; it lays the foundation for the potential reshaping of the Western landscape and has potential impacts far beyond ecological concerns. There are cultural heritage sites, sacred lands, and natural landmarks that hold immense significance to indigenous communities and nature enthusiasts alike. Moreover, the economic prospect tied to large-scale solar development has a centrifugal effect, influencing surrounding industries, land values, and potentially paving the way for a wave of new infrastructure projects.
The preferential alternative showcases a tightrope walk between the BLM and industry demands, seemingly prioritizing the expansion of energy development while adhering to ecological constraints. However, many argue this is a shortsighted vision ripe for disaster. By not integrating alternatives like rooftop solar, the draft PeIS ignores sustainable solutions already available, which could decarbonize the grid without compromising vast swathes of natural habitats.
The Preferred Alternative's Predicament: Nevada as a Case Study
Zooming in on the BLM's preferred alternative and its implications sheds light on the stark reality of its potential impact. Nevada stands in the crosshairs of change, with nearly 7 million acres earmarked for possible solar development. This transformative allocation of land is mirrored in varying degrees across many of the 10 other states included in the PEIS, each grappling with its unique set of challenges.
The draft plan raises a red flag for stakeholders, prompting questions about the necessity and rationale behind the proposed large-scale encroachment of solar development on public lands, particularly when cost-effective and less destructive alternatives like rooftop solar have yet to be fully harnessed.
"Nevada has the most land that would be affected, just shy of 7 million acres, most of it in the western half of the state."
As we reflect on the key points raised by the draft PEIS, the conversation must venture beyond the mere allocation of land for solar development. It should incorporate a broader discourse on renewable energy policy, the sustainability of current consumption levels, and the pressing need to balance economic interests with long-standing environmental values. The decision that follows may very well shape not only the power grids of tomorrow but the very essence of the Western landscape we cherish today.
This newsletter is a project of the nonprofit Desert Advocacy Media Network. D.A.M.N. also produces the 90 Miles from Needles desert protection podcast and Letters From the Desert, an email newsletter by desert writer Chris Clarke.
No. No. NO! Let's not industrialize the desert! They did that east of the Columbia Gorge with those ghastly wind turbines. They disfigured the landscape making it into a manicured, "tamed" environment. I prefer my desert vistas to be freed of such human grotesque defacement. Not for aesthetic reasons, no- but because such vistas represent lands we haven't yet turned into our parks and playthings. If I could I would have the drylands have no roads into them but trails, no structures, no solar panels, no turbines, no lithium mining, no oil exploration... Just windswept wilderness, like it was before we got here and decided to "improve" things.