Interior Prepares Reviews for 31.8 Gigawatts of Renewables

by Christian Roselund

The Interior Department is currently processing environmental reviews for 48 “priority” solar, wind, and geothermal projects on public land in Western States totaling 31.827 gigawatts of capacity, according to a report released by the agency. This follows on 2.89 gigawatts of projects which it approved during 2021.

These projects are located on land in eight Western states controlled by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM). BLM manages one million square kilometers of land that is often rangeland, desert, scrub, and/or mountainous, and is not part of the National Forest or National Park System. This land has been widely exploited in the past by the oil and gas industry, but over the past 12 years has become attractive to solar and wind developers.

Of the 31.827 gigawatts of priority projects, 29.595 gigawatts, or roughly 93% is solar photovoltaics. And while the projects are l in eight states, the majority of projects are in Nevada and California, with some large projects also located in Arizona and Wyoming.

In addition to this capacity, BLM has also approved six transmission interconnection projects to connect solar projects to the grid, and four major transmission lines. The interconnection projects are scheduled for fiscal years 2022 and 2023, and the agency anticipates permitting decisions for the transmission lines in 2023 and 2024.

The Biden Administration has made it a priority to deploy renewable energy on public lands. The Administration has also opened these lands to oil and gas extraction, after being forced to via lawsuit.

Read more:

News coverage: Interior eyes major increase in renewables on federal land (E&E News)

Source: Public Land Renewable Energy – Fiscal Year 2021 (BLM)