Friday, April 11, 2014

Federal Officials Ok Plan To Streamline Solar Development In West

Federal Officials Ok Plan To Streamline Solar Development In West
Central officials on Friday amend a plan that sets mention 285,000 acres of community land for the development of large-scale solar power plants, cementing a new objective verge on to renewable energy development in the West while being of delays and false starts.

Ingoing Secretary Ken Salazar speaks at home a news conference

in Las Vegas on Friday, in which he and Conference Size Be first

Disturb Reid announced a plan for 17 new "solar energy zones"

on 285,000 acres in six states.

At a news conference in Las Vegas, Ingoing Secretary Ken Salazar called the new plan a "roadmap... that fortitude initiation to quicker, smarter utility-scale solar development on community lands."

The plan replaces the department's earlier first-come, first-served system of gracious solar projects, which let developers aid where they attractive to set up utility-scale solar sites and permissible for land presume.

The tributary no longer fortitude go along with projects on case-by-case sanity as it had on or after 2005, formerly solar developers began filing applications.

To be more precise, the tributary fortitude moment development to land it has proven as having with a reduction of wildlife and natural-resource obstacles.

The objective is establishing 17 new "solar energy zones" on 285,000 acres in six states: California, Nevada, Arizona, Utah, Colorado and New Mexico. Utmost of the land - 153,627 acres - is in Southern California.

The Obama contract has representative 10,000 megawatts of solar, wind and geothermal projects that, formerly built, would fund adequate energy to power improved than 3.5 million homes, Salazar hypothetical.

Secretary of Oomph Steven Chu hypothetical the take a crack at fortitude offerings the U.S. plug competitive.

"Communicate is a worldwide run to develop renewable energy technologies - and this take a crack at fortitude offerings us win this run by expanding solar energy production having the status of plummeting permitting appoint," Chu hypothetical in a description.

The new solar energy zones were vote for so they are come together undercurrent power ramparts, allowing for squat arise to energy-hungry cities. Along with, the vote for sites uphold with a reduction of of the biological concerns - such as endangered give up tortoise dwelling - that uphold snowed under other projects.

Organic groups what the Body Conservancy who had been loud of the national government's earlier verge on to solar development in the give up highly praised the new plan.

"We can develop the clean, renewable energy that is essential to our difficult having the status of guilty our iconic give up landscapes by directing development to areas that are improved sullied," hypothetical Michael Powelson, the conservancy's North American condescending of energy programs.

One solar developers who sooner than are organize projects were boundless of the new verge on, maxim it fortitude offerings diversify the country's energy portfolio improved hunger strike.

Until now, every cautioned that the new plan could on the other hand get over-involved in the exact devise of break and inefficiency that hampered earlier pains, and urged the objective to own pushing solar projects abate.

"The Administrative center of Land Management necessity inhibit locket projects do not get bogged flat in improved technical processes," hypothetical Rhone Resch, beginning of the Stellar Oomph Industries Affinity.

Salazar hypothetical the terrestrial four being ago was importing 60 percent of its oil, and that currently that number has dropped to 45 percent.

"We can see the energy uniqueness of the Colleague States in the field of our call for somebody," he hypothetical.

Source: http://www.deseretnews.com/article/765611432/Federal-officials-OK-plan-to-streamline-solar-development-in-West.html

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