1.1M Acres Of Oregon’s Federal Land Part Of Solar Energy Plan Extension
A plan has been published to extend the Western Solar Plan to other states, including over 1 million acres of federal land in central and southern Oregon.
Solar Electricity In Oregon
To meet electricity demand by 2035, at least 700,000 acres of public land is needed to expand solar energy production nationwide. The U.S. Energy Information Administration indicated that around 3% of Oregon’s electricity has been produced from solar in recent years.
To meet their climate change goals, western states must expand clean energy production including solar. In Oregon, officials set a goal of reducing carbon emissions by 50% from pre-1990 levels by 2050.
The federal Bureau of Land Management (BLM) confirmed that the Biden administration set a target of a 100% clean electricity grid by the same year.
The BLM has leased tens of millions of acres of federal land to fossil fuel companies for oil, coal, and natural gas exploration and production for decades and the shift to solar by BLM marks a major expansion for clean energy production in the Bureau of Land Management’s land leasing portfolio.
When it was released in January, the draft Western Solar Plan received over 64,000 comments. A BLM spokesperson, Brian Hires, confirmed that 1,200 of these comments were unique and did not form part of a campaign.
Plan To Extend Western Solar Plan To Oregon
The federal government owns a little over 50% of Oregon land which is primarily managed by the Bureau of Land Management and the U.S. Forest Service.
The Western Solar Plan is an Obama-era project permitting solar projects on federal land. Only Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah were included when it was first implemented in 2012.
On August 29, federal BLM officials announced that a plan had been drafted to extend the Western Solar Plan to include Oregon, Idaho, Montana, Washington, and Wyoming.
1.1 million acres of land in Oregon deemed by officials to be of low risk for any adverse environmental effects from solar installations is included in the new plan which earmarks plots within 15 miles of existing or planned transmission lines.
After the publication of the finalized plan on August 29, a 30-day period is initiated for anyone who participated in the initial planning to voice their opposition to the plan.
Once this has expired, the plan goes to the Western governors- including Gov. Tina Kotek, for them to review to ensure it is consistent with existing state and local plans. If all goes well, the BLM will likely approve and adopt the expanded Western Solar Plan later this year.