Interior Secretary Sally Jewell OK’s Desert Renewable Energy Conservation Plan

Interior Secretary Sally Jewell approved the first phase of a sweeping renewable energy and conservation plan for California’s deserts Wednesday, Sept. 14, 2016 that’s expected to shape large-scale wind and solar development for decades to come.

“Climate change is the pressing issue of the day, and this region is part of the solution,” Jewell said during a signing ceremony for the Desert Renewable Energy Conservation Plan at the Santa Rosa & San Jacinto Mountains National Monument visitor center in Palm Desert.

The plan covers 10 million acres of public lands in the deserts of seven California counties, including Riverside, San Bernardino and Los Angeles. In the works for eight years, it strives to speed up approvals for solar, wind and geothermal projects while focusing energy development in areas where such projects would do the least amount of harm to wildlife habitat and other natural and cultural resources.

The plan gives new protection to some of the most sensitive and pristine wildlife habitats left in the nation.
Habitats include the Silurian Valley in San Bernardino County; Amargosa River Basin and Panamint Valley on each side of Death Valley National Park; and the Chuckwalla Bench, south of Interstate 10 in Riverside County.
The conservation plan also is expected to help California and the nation meet carbon-free goals set to combat climate charge.

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