| Solar Energy Study Areas: Let’s Make Them Opportunities for Conservation |
 |
 |
 |
| Wednesday, 08 July 2009 05:07 |
 On June 29th, Senator Reid and Interior Secretary Salazar held a press conference at UNLV, announcing a plan to fast-track 24 solar energy study areas in six western states. Seven of them are on public lands in Nevada: Amargosa Valley (32,699 acres) Dry Lake (16,516 acres) Delamar Valley (17,932 acres) Dry Lake Valley North (49,775 acres) East Mormon Mountain (7,418 acres) Gold Point (5,830 acres Miller’s (19,205 acres) These areas make sense for fast-track study to see how suitable they are for solar energy development. The real task is to make sure that whatever development does happen—on these lands or elsewhere--takes into account wildlife and the habitats they depend on. We're calling this "smart from the start" renewable energy development. Mitigation—protecting or restoring habitats to compensate for those lost in development—must be part of renewable energy development from here on out. We need to reap the benefits of developing solar energy AND reap the benefits of even greater conservation. You can find a news release we wrote about this here. KUNR 88.7 fm, the Reno/Tahoe public radion station, and KVBC, Channel 3 in Las Vegas, both ran short stories about it... links coming soon, when we get 'em. |
