The Obama administration has designated 192,100 acres of Arizona public land to be used for utility-scale solar and wind energy developments.
The Restoration Design Energy Project caps a “three-year, statewide environmental analysis of disturbed land and other areas with few known resource conflicts that could accommodate renewable energy projects,†according to CleanEdge.
This is the 34th renewable energy proposal the administration has approved for public land since 2009, which includes a variety of wind, solar, and geothermal projects. These projects could generate a combined 10,400 megawatts of electricity, enough to power over 3 million homes.
The administration says it will not use land containing sensitive resources, endangered or threatened wildlife, or cultural/historic sites. In order to be effective, the land must also have access to transmission lines and load centers, and be within close proximity to an area with high electricity demand. So far, it sounds like a good start to scouting out land that will provide valuable resources without interfering with nature.
Image CC licensed by Doc Searls: A combined cycle power plant in neighboring Nevada.
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