Should we save the desert tortoise, or plow over its habitat to build solar power plants that can help us save ourselves? It’s a question that has arisen frequently in recent years as solar developers have flocked to California’s Mojave Desert in search of generous federal incentives to turn the sun’s heat into electricity, raising conflicts with conservationists and Native American tribes who think all this “progress” will ravage natural and cultural resources.
The federal government aimed at finding a middle ground in that conflict last week when Interior Secretary Ken Salazar announced formal approval of a long-awaited plan that maps out where industrial-sized solar plants can be built and where they can’t. Generally, it’s a well-balanced blueprint that benefits the solar industry by providing certainty for project owners while ensuring that the most environmentally sensitive lands are protected. But that doesn’t mean everybody is happy.
Continued: http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/editorials/la-ed-solar-20121016,0,4231220.story
Also: Louisiana’s Solar Tax Credit Under Review/Renewable Energy World
Clean Energy Has Highest Documented Rate of Return of Any Federal Program — When Will That Get Reported?/Climate Progress
First Solar signs deal to build power plants in Indonesia/Phoenix Business Journal
If you’d like to discuss energy, contact Court Rich, crich@roselawgroup.com
