Final Environmental Impact Statement Released for Desert Quartzite Solar Project
^The Mule Mountains in the distance, looking across the Colorado Desert with diverse microphyll woodland and creosote desert, part of which would be developed for a utiloity-scale solar project.
September 26, 2019 - Blythe CA - The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) announced today the release of their Final Environmental Impact Statement and Environmental Impact Report (EIS/EIR) and California Desert Conservation Area Land Use Plan Amendment for the Desert Quartzite Solar Project in eastern Riverside County.
The publication of the Notice of Availability in the Federal Register opens a 30-day protest period and a 60-day governor’s consistency review.
The project would generate up to 450 megawatts, and cost $1 billion to construct.
But as usual, nothing has been learned in the last 10 years concerning "Smart from the Start" energy siting. This lies on beautiful, biodiverse Colorado Desert with Mojave fringe-toed lizards, diverse desert birds, rare desert-adapted mule deer, and micropyhyll tree woodlands on public lands near Blythe and close to the Colorado River.
Plus, the Mule Mountains are sacred to many tribal groups in the area, and we have talked with tribal members who have said no energy development should happen in this region. Apparently Environmental Justice only matters when fossil fuel energy is involved, but when large-scale solar energy is involved in resource destruction, people look the other way.
Interestingly the BLM preferred a "Resource Aviodance Alternative" which would be 2,833 acres. It would have the same 450 MW output. BLM said in its EIS:
"Resource Avoidance Alternative was developed to specifically reduce impacts to cultural and biological resources, as well as drainages and watercourses. In general, the alternative would avoid the drainages and sand dunes in the northwestern portion of the Project area, as well as resources in the southwestern portion of the Project area. This alternative further provides a buffer between the project and avoided resources in most instances."
A "Reduced Project Alternative further reduces the acreage of the solar arrays, with elimination of the proposed solar arrays primarily in the northern portion of the area to maintain habitat for the Mojave fringe-toed lizard and Harwood’s eriastrum, a BLM Sensitive Species plant." This alternative was not chosen, however.
Yet a larger 3,770-acre project is now the proposed project.
The Palo Verde Mesa and Chuckwalla Valley have taken the brunt of so-called renewable energy development in the last 10 years, as public lands wildlife habitat is gobbled up for mega-power plants.
To fight climate change we are supposed to plant trees and protect their carbon-sequestration abilities. Yet the proposed Desert Quartzite Solar Project would bulldoze and destroy palo verde trees, desert ironwood, and smoke trees.
^Desert ironwood (Olneya tesota) next to the Mule Mountains. This will be detroyed for a utility-scale solar project? How much carbon will be released? Do desert trees not matter?
See more photos we took from the same area, when the Rio Mesa solar power tower project was proposed several years ago (and withdrawn because the area held a vital Cultural Landscape and dense paleontological resources).
See the BLM news release here:
Desert Quartzite Solar Project In Sand Transport Corridor
November 11, 2018 - Blythe CA - Comments have past for the Desert Quartzite Solar Project draft Environmental Impact Statement. This would be a 3,800 acre (5 square mile) photovoltaic project with battery storage built on public lands near Blythe, California. It will be right next to the Mule Mountain Area of Critical Environmental Concern which has abundant archeological sites. Most of the project site is habitat for Mojave fringe-toed lizards. The project is located in an avian flyway and is expected to cause bird mortality. For some reason the developer deiced to place the entire solar field in the Chuckwalla Valley to palo Verde Mesa sand transport corridor. With chainlink fences surrounding the project, we are not sure how the company will deal with moving sand piling up against the fence.
The entire region is being sacrificed for rooftop compatible solar panels.
Desert Quartzite Solar Project Moving Forward
March 5, 2015 - In the Federal Register this morning: the Bureau of Land Management has opened up the official review for the Desert Quartzite Solar Project, a First Solar photovoltaic thin-film facility. This will be located near Blythe, California and will be about 2,500 acres. It will be just south of the community of Mesa Verde. The residents of Mesa Verde are now complaining about all of the dust that is being kicked up from the Blythe Solar Farm being bulldozed right now. The project could threaten desert tortoises, Mojave fringe-toed lizards, and Yuma clapper rails.
Public scoping comments will be accepted until April 6th. They can be mailed to
blm_ca_desert_quartzite_solar_project@blm.gov. The comment deadline is April , 2015. Here is the link to the Federal Register Notice: http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/…/FR-2015-03-06/html/2015-05290.htm
