WASHINGTON — The Division of the Inside yesterday introduced that it’s taking the following steps towards allowing two proposed transmission initiatives, which is able to facilitate elevated renewable power growth and supply in Nevada.

The Bureau of Land Administration (BLM) is initiating the environmental evaluate for the Greenlink North challenge and releasing a draft environmental impression assertion for Greenlink West transmission initiatives, which collectively would assist join eight gigawatts of fresh power to the Western energy grid.

These initiatives signify continued progress within the Biden-Harris administration’s efforts to speed up transmission buildout to decrease shoppers’ power prices, forestall energy outages within the face of maximum climate, create good-paying union jobs, and make progress in the direction of attaining President Biden’s objective of a 100% clear electrical energy grid by 2035.

“The Division of the Inside is dedicated to increasing clear power growth to handle local weather change, improve America’s power safety and supply for good-paying union jobs,” stated Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Land and Minerals Administration Laura Daniel-Davis. “Underneath President Biden and Secretary Haaland’s management, this Administration is taking an all-hands-on-deck method towards formidable clear power targets that can help households, increase native economies, and assist enhance local weather resilience in communities throughout the West.”

“Our public lands have a essential function to play within the clear power transition,” stated Bureau of Land Administration Director Tracy Stone-Manning. “As a way to guarantee wholesome public lands sooner or later, the BLM should assist prepared the ground on addressing local weather change.”

The Greenlink West transmission challenge would run for greater than 450 miles, connecting Las Vegas to Reno, and offering capability for renewable power growth in Clark, Esmerelda, Lyon, Mineral, Nye and Storey counties. The discover of availability for Greenlink West opens a 90-day public remark interval on the challenge’s draft environmental impression assertion and related useful resource administration plan modification. If authorized, the Greenlink West transmission challenge is anticipated to have the potential to unlock as much as 4 gigawatts of renewable power.

The discover of intent for the Greenlink North transmission challenge, a 232-mile-long, 525 kV transmission line operating by White Pine, Eureka, Lander, Churchill and Lyon counties, begins a 45-day scoping and public remark interval to assist inform the event of the BLM’s environmental impression assertion for the challenge. If authorized, the Greenlink North transmission challenge might additionally unlock as much as 4 gigawatts of renewable power.

The BLM goals to finalize the proposed paperwork and develop a file of determination for the Greenlink West challenge by late 2024, and to launch draft environmental planning paperwork for the Greenlink North challenge for public remark later this yr.

The initiation of environmental evaluate for the Greenlink North challenge and launch of a draft environmental impression assertion for Greenlink West comply with a number of different main milestones within the Division’s continued progress on clear power initiatives, together with: approval of the Sunzia Southwest Transmission Mission in New Mexico; building approval for California’s Daylight Storage II 300 MW Battery Storage System; and subsequent steps within the evaluate of Utah’s Star Vary Photo voltaic Mission and Nevada’s proposed 300 MW Bonanza Photo voltaic Mission.

Since 2021, the BLM has authorized 35 initiatives (10 photo voltaic, 8 geothermal, and 17 gen-ties) on roughly 23,396 acres of BLM-managed lands. These initiatives are anticipated to supply 8,160 megawatts of electrical energy — sufficient to energy greater than 2.6 million properties.

The BLM is at present processing 74 utility-scale onshore clear power initiatives proposed on public lands within the western United States. This contains photo voltaic, wind and geothermal initiatives, in addition to interconnected gen-tie strains which can be important to scrub power initiatives proposed on non-federal land. These initiatives have the mixed potential so as to add over 37,000 megawatts of renewable power to the western electrical grid. The BLM can also be enterprise the preliminary evaluate of over 150 purposes for photo voltaic and wind growth, in addition to 51 purposes for wind and photo voltaic power testing.

The BLM manages huge stretches of public lands which can be making vital contributions to the nation’s renewable power portfolio. To advertise the event of those power sources, the BLM gives websites for environmentally sound growth of renewable power on public lands. The environment friendly allowing of renewable power and transmission from our nation’s public lands is essential in attaining the Biden-Harris administration’s objective of a carbon pollution-free energy sector by 2035, in addition to Congress’ path within the Power Act of 2020 to allow 25 gigawatts of photo voltaic, wind, and geothermal manufacturing on public lands no later than 2025.

Courtesy of The Division of the Inside.

Featured picture: The Blue Mountain geothermal plant in Humboldt County, Nevada. Picture by Dennis Schroeder, NREL.