The U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has finalized the construction of the Oberon Solar Project on approximately 2,700 acres of land managed by BLM near the Desert Center in Riverside County, California.
"This solar project is the third project to be approved for full construction under the Desert Renewable Energy Conservation Program, and is an example of how California's public lands are delivering on the Biden-Harris administration," said BLM California director Karen Mouritsen. An example of the important role BLM can play in achieving the goal of 100% carbon-free electricity by 2035, BLM is committed to responsible renewable energy development, balancing the protection and use of public lands."
The Desert Renewable Energy Conservation Program (DRECP), an interagency planning effort covering 22.5 million acres in seven California counties, has two primary goals. First, provide a streamlined process for developing utility-scale renewable energy generation and transmission in the Southern California desert in accordance with federal and state renewable energy goals and policies. Second, long-term protection and management of special species and desert vegetation communities and other physical, cultural, scenic and social resources within the DRECP plan area through a durable regulatory mechanism.
Both the BLM and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) have legal responsibilities to protect wildlife under the Federal Endangered Species Act and the California Endangered Species Act. BLM must ensure that the needs of wildlife, fish and plants are taken into account when authorizing land use. CDFW requires project developers to avoid, minimize and/or compensate for impacts on fish, wildlife, plants and their habitats.
Despite these safeguards, environmental groups have voiced their opposition to the Oberon solar project. Basin and Range Watch is one such group, with the following statement on its website: "Despite new mitigation measures negotiated by BLM between a controversial environmental assessment and a final decision under DRECP, the project will kill a large amount of desert Ironwood trees—an endangered vegetation community in California.”
In January, the Desert Sun published an opinion piece by Palm Desert resident Ruth Nolan, who expressed her opposition to the project.
"It is a disgrace for our federal government to allow companies that make money by exploiting and destroying our public wilderness in this way, and the antithesis of environmental sustainability; setting up large-scale renewables in California's desert wilderness," she said. Renewable energy projects are not only unnecessary - rooftop solar is a viable alternative - but very unethical."
Last week, the BLM Palm Springs South Coast office authorized Oberon Solar LLC to begin full-scale construction of Oberon 1 and II, which together will generate up to 500 megawatts or enough electricity to power approximately 146,000 homes. The project will also have 500 megawatts of battery storage. Both are expected to be operational by 2023.
BLM said it is currently processing 64 utility-scale onshore clean energy projects, including solar, wind and geothermal, proposed on public lands in the western United States. These projects have the potential to add more than 41,000 megawatts of renewable energy to the western grid.
The BLM is also conducting a preliminary review of 90 solar and wind development applications and 51 wind and solar testing applications. These clean energy projects will bring the U.S. closer to achieving the Biden administration's goal of 100 percent carbon-free electricity by 2035, and support a bill in the California Senate that sets a standard for a 60 percent renewable energy mix by 2030.