For the last few years Governor Schwarzenegger and the Big Solar Industry have been pushing to expedite the permit process for new solar power plants awaiting the greenlight in California’s Mojave desert. With federal lands all over the desert southwest open to large concentrated solar power (CSP) plants, private interests have been clamoring for a spot in line.

For all those involved, it is universally agreed that we need renewable energy outlets asap. So you’d figure that environmentalists would be right up front pushing for production along with their industry allies, but in actuality, it is the environmental sector that is holding things up. But why, why after all these years of promoting renewable power would the instigators themselves stand in the way of their vision becoming reality? Governor Schwarzenegger can’t seem to understand. Neither can Big Solar.

Fortunately, in a recent blog, the Desert Protective Council spelled out their sector’s staunch opposition. They assert that a solar power plant CAN have a negative impact on the local environment and, especially in the case of desert installations, may actually contribute to global warming. In short, here are the DPC’s points of opposition: (more…)

Our first Solar Refugee? That’s what it looks like for tortoises residing on a 3,700-acre stretch of land in California’s Mojave Desert. The bulldozers are coming once again to stamp down the bare-earth footprint of mankind. But this time it’s not the trees they’re after, nor the oil; it’s the sunlight.

The Ivanpah Solar Energy Generating System will be located on land administered by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM). Technically the acreage in question is not protected as critical habitat for the tortoises, although it has been confirmed that some of the creatures do live there. Before construction (or destruction) on the land begins, California’s state reptiles will be moved to surrounding areas that are still protected. Sounds good…

But some environmentalists are arguing for some reparations for the tortoises. First there is the issue of translocating. A recent op-ed in the San Bernardino Sun implied a high risk of mortality in moving desert tortoise populations. Secondly, protected or not, you are removing nearly 4,000 acres of habitable land from the tortoises. Solar Partners, the subsidiary of BrightSource Energy that will construct the solar plant, is offering a 1:1 compensation. That is for every acre of habitat destroyed, they will acquire one acre of land as future habitat.

Again, it sounds pretty fair, but the issue gets more complex. The Ivanpah region is considered valuable habitat, or prime real estate, for the desert tortoise. So if the proposed replacement habitat does not meet equal standards of living, should not the ratio of compensation to eradication be higher? In his op-ed, Professor G. Sidney Silliman of Cal Poly Ponoma suggests a ratio of 5:1. (more…)

Al Gore’s 5-pt energy economy recovery plan for the new Obama administration was enlightening.

I believe that timing is everything. I also believe that there are millions of Americans that don’t take solar energy seriously. We all need to get on the same boat, collectively take the reins, and change our ways. Al Gore’s energy plan couldn’t have come at a better time.

With jobs flushing down the toilet or being outsourced at a phenomenal rate, it seems the planetary energies and stars are lining up: Gore’s got a plan for a healthier lifestyle and it will create millions of new jobs, too.

I hate spending $60 every time I gas up my car, don’t you? And, my electric bill is much, much higher than that. Gore’s idea to put people to work replacing 19th-century energy technologies that depend on dangerous and expensive carbon-based fuels with 21st-century technologies that use fuel that is free (sun & wind) sounds like a solid solution to many problems.

His plan to re-power America is an aggressive commitment to producing 100 percent of our electricity from carbon-free sources within 10 years. And, like the domino effect, it’s also a solution to the climate crisis and the economic crisis. (more…)