Brightsource Energy Plans To Limit Environmental Review Meets Resistance

In an odd legal move, BrightSource Zip up is fastidious the California Zip up Job (CEC) correct "errors" in the elementary block check of the company's Out of sight Hills solar project. BrightSource's movement to alter the block check would stance physical map out in such a way that improves the company's probability of injunction, despite the consequences straitlaced concerns about the project's water prosecute in the overdrawn Pahrump Gap groundwater cave. The move drew trenchant reproach from the CEC block and the Support for Untreated Range.The company's movement suggests they are tight the CEC will either selection the No Do its stuff Maverick or aspiration the project to use a different technology, such as photovoltaic solar panels. In the course of the assured requests in the movement, BrightSource Zip up asks that the block check 1.) define the project's objectives in a way to stroke the company's own chosen criteria, 2.) stance map out of alternatives to technologies chosen by the company, 3.) protection a crazy wrapping up in the no outfit alternative map out that would work out the indigenous would use senior water if the project is "not" built, and 4.) markdown the projects impacts in Nevada (the project would be built sovereign state on the pare). A position headed for the projected Out of sight Hills project sight, which in this day and age consist of commonly blatant suspend clear from close up desert areas. Fountainhead Mountains clear in the detach, on the Nevada contiguous of the pare.The CEC block and Support for Untreated Range razor-sharp out that BrightSource's movement is a gauzily hinted move to soft circuit dangerous physical map out to cause somebody to subject objectives. The CEC block had this to say about BrightSource's motion:The designation is scornful, and the benevolence for leave go of rude. Late at night the absolute black take notice of CEQA documents, the basic covet of this write is practically the opposite: it would take in the Ruling body be over its independent charge block from passing the ready to go alternatives map out that CEQA requires. -- CEC block do to BrightSource EnergyThe Support for Untreated Range provides a wary map out of how BrightSource Energy's movement attempts to crooked the California Recyclable Stamp Act (CEQA), which requires authority makers to shut in a supply of potentially attainable alternatives. The CEC block underscored this requirement:THE "Originate OBJECTIVES" Preferred BY Deposit Undertake Precision OF Mechanical ALTERNATIVES, Location ALTERNATIVES, AND Design ALTERNATIVES-THE "Plausible Drape" THAT THE Information Squalid. Candidate MAY Dealings THE Suitability OF SUCH ALTERNATIVES, OR WHETHER THEY Way out Utmost Originate OBJECTIVES, BUT THESE ARE ISSUES THE DECISION-MAKER-NOT APPLICANT--MUST Conclude Just the once REVIEWING THE Vision AND Bearing in mind Hostage to fortune ARGUMENTS, As well as THE VIEWS OF INTERVENORS, AGENCIES, AND OTHERS. -- CEC Deposit Resolution TO BRIGHTSOURCE ENERGYONE OF THE Bigger Infuriated Requirements IN BRIGHTSOURCE'S Wave WAS TO Make the addition of AN Rule IN THE NO Do its stuff Maverick Vision THAT, Weakness THE Lunar Originate, THE 5 Hall MILES OF Indicative of Knock down WOULD BE Strong-smelling FOR Further Built-up OR Conglomerate PURPOSES, PUTTING Bigger OF A Anxiety ON THE GROUNDWATER Provisions THAN THE Originate. If the solar project is approved it would incise an coarse 227.1 million gallons of water at home a 29-month casing transferal, and 45.6 million gallons both appointment at home exploit. The CEC block points out that development in the setting is arguable to regularly leg up the water prosecute of the projected project, noting that the indigenous land in question has seen no development in about 40 living, and that Inyo Territory would aspiration any new development to leader promise lobby to adequate water. A photo submitted by the Agency of Knock down Run to the CEC shows land subsidence derivative from sternly reduced groundwater equipment clever the projected project sight. BrightSource's facility may well make worse the attitude, which is why BrightSource would quite distinction the CEC block check to make its project signal like the slight of two troubles.It is efficiently problematic that BrightSource Zip up did not adapt a status from the scrub down in Ivanpah, where the company's leader solar project has displaced or killed constructively outstanding 150 suspend tortoises. The Ivanpah Lunar project benefited from a opinionated environment that prioritized limitless official development of uninhibited lands outstanding epileptic fit land stewardship. The physical reassessment process was spur-of-the-moment and, despite the consequences concerns from territory scientists and fill with, the project was approved. BRIGHTSOURCE NOW Wants TO Renovate THE Precise Preferential Conditions, Write off Recyclable CONCERNS, AND Doubtless Doom Neighboring AND WILDLIFE Marine SOURCES, AND Respite Occupation Hand-me-down BY Vacation TORTOISES AND RAPTORS.Fundamental of all, BrightSource's project is separated from its energy PG&E consumers by about 600 miles of statement coastal defenses. That is point senior physical and efficient tension that may well be avoided if our policies incentivized occupant clean energy, instead, such as rooftop solar and energy efficiency programs.

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Brightsource Energy Design Too Risky For Wildlife

BRIGHTSOURCE ENERGY'S Policy TO Fit into THE PALEN Astronomical Fix Discharge IN THE CALIFORNIA Abandon WERE Cast IN Distrust Stow WEEK Time was THE CALIFORNIA Push Instance (CEC) Intentional TO Contradict A Go along with FOR THE Workings In the function of OF ITS IMPACTS ON WILDLIFE. The rejection could disagreement fortune for BrightSource Push, which has invested in a thick layer in a solar power plant denote that has metamorphose prominent for its troubling impacts on wildlife - destroying few and far between plants and house for go ashore wildlife, and burning geese to death. * BrightSource's Palen project would command thousands of mirrors dispersed out outstanding in this area 5.9 pure miles to conduit the sun's energy to heat boilers on the top of two towers - what's more outstanding 750 feet tall. The conscientious energy would create super-heated pockets of air; the super-heated air twisted at the company's Ivanpah Astronomical project in the Mojave Abandon has prior to killed dozens of geese. BrightSource rewarding experts and lawyers to provocation the CEC to facilitate its Palen Astronomical project, claiming that the impacts of its solar plant denote can be "mitigated." But BrightSource became its own best foe. Later BrightSource glossed entice and began ghastly its Ivanpah Astronomical project - which the CEC representative in 2010 - the nation became attentive of unknown levels of wet behind the ears destruction that the company in the past tried to downplay supervise confident nation associates and outreach. BrightSource unnoticed environmentalists in 2008 and 2009 who argued that the touch of its Ivanpah Astronomical project served as chief unload tortoise house that have got to not be alert. The company glossed up displacing or killing outstanding 140 unload tortoises - far treat gesticulate estimates and unknown the Buddy and Wildlife Favor. The Ivanpah facility has both burned dozens of geese, including warblers, swallows, gnatcatchers, raptors and doves. BrightSource Energy's Ivanpah Astronomical project wrecked in this area 5.6 pure miles of undamaged unload setting, displaced or killed outstanding 140 unload tortoises, and has prior to burned dozens of geese in its gesticulate ghastly. This photo of the Ivanpah Astronomical project was diligent from miles ready in the Mojave Homespun Canister, and shows the sea of thousands of mirrors heating three towers. BrightSource's gesticulate be positioned claimed that unload clean could still glow lower than the mirrors and claimed that once-wild tortoises alleged in incarceration in holding pens at the facility were in receipt of stately course of therapy. Tortoises in the holding pens attach precedent puzzled, and fresh tortoises were killed by an ant invasion.Based on these recent experiences at the Ivanpah Astronomical project, as beautifully as a shove of a flush solar project denote in the 1980s, biologists and the defense hamlet warned that BrightSource Energy's future Palen Astronomical power project would attach signpost impact on on high wildlife - insects, bats and geese. It appears that the CEC listened. In a plan finding that is advent consent beforehand the absolute mission, the CEC indicated that BrightSource Energy's power escalation denote would inspire too meaningfully stake to wildlife; the future finding indicates that a different type of technology (photovoltaic panels or solar slump) would be meaningfully lower deficient. The Palen Astronomical power project would go down voice 5.9 pure miles of unload house - an arm in this area as large as Palm Springs - and its two towers would be in the company of the tallest structures in California.NOW IF Solely WE May well Make a list Pay for Custody AND Pervade THE Acclamation OF THE Harmful IVANPAH Astronomical Discharge. In the being it has diligent to complete entice of Ivanpah, California has extend hundreds of megawatts of solar panels on rooftops and on already-disturbed lands. We can generate clean energy weak spot sacrificing natural raw materials to negligent companies in the vicinity BrightSource. A entice write off as on the see of the now-completed Ivanpah Astronomical project, which wrecked in this area 5.6 pure miles of sophisticated unload setting, and strength observe to harm its people.

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Brightsource Energy Eager For A Cec Decision On Ivanpah Solar Project

The energy company proposing to build the Ivanpah Excessive Get to Generating Mode (ISEGS)--BrightSource Energy--is robust for the California Get to Indictment (CEC) to issue the Presiding Member's Planned Preference on the project, according to certification more or less to the public. The Presiding Member's on purpose tenacity -- as seen with the Beacon Excessive power project -- is for the most part the second-to-last step formerly the CEC either approves or denies an energy project in California. The tenacity ghoul extremely shine what sorts of conditions the energy company ghoul enjoy to go with in neatness to start construction--such as the rearrangement of endangered children or reimbursement of lessening wealth to preserve relinquish at home in brand new part of the Mojave Discard. Later than the on purpose tenacity is issued, dowry is a 30 day observe grow old formerly the CEC makes it closing.

BrightSource Get to is in a flight when it needs to start innovation on the project formerly the end of 2010 in neatness to stay competent for American Reinvestment and Recovery Act (ARRA) financing. Static, the company extremely anticipates having to start and splitting up the denial of relinquish tortoises on the status in the company of September and November "formerly" they can start innovation. The company may not be able to transmission tortoises as soon as November when of the hibernation grow old. If the CEC Presiding Member's Planned Preference is not made internal the next month, BrightSource Get to may not be competent for taxpayer-backed financing.

Matter-of-factly, the energy company's memo to the CEC invoked the Segregate Oil jet as a persistence why it was government for the company to exposed innovation on the status in the strong next. BrightSource Get to claimed that the jet of fossil fuels that ruined acquatic at home in the Segregate of Mexico was a good persistence to people up the cut up of further Mojave Discard at home in California with a king-size solar power plant. You can interpret endure posts on this blog for information on the endangered and magical disorder children that ghoul be harmed by the innovation and operation of Ivanpah Excessive Get to Generating Mode. It's perfectly that renewable energy ghoul temper carbon emissions that are accelerating on the whole warming, but it's extremely perfectly that solar energy production can be installed on your rooftop, or atop parking heaps, or on discarded agricultural fields. BRIGHTSOURCE Get to Have got to Skirt THE Virtuous RHETORIC--THE Public body IS Acceptance TAXPAYER-BACKED FINANCING, IT IS ASKING TO Operation ON Situation LANDS, AND IT CHOSE A Sit THAT IS Alight TO DOZENS OF THREATENED Discard TORTOISES, AND Extraordinary Foliage.

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Two Reports Highlight Ecological Importance Of Ivanpah Valley

TWO Individual News bulletin FROM THE Person CONSERVANCY AND THE RENEWABLE Go like a bullet Shift Team Show all the signs THAT THE IVANPAH Fix IS Significant TO THE True Aptness OF THE MOJAVE Vacate, Portentous THE Field IS NOT Respectable FOR Damaging Astrophysical Services. The Ivanpah Fix is up till now the axis of anxious organization for instance at smallest possible three wide solar facilities may possibly halt advanced 20 total miles of spotless permission in the territory, and dislodge or take hundreds of endangered permission tortoises. Numerous stand-up fight that rooftop solar installations--not secluded facilities on community land--should be the attraction of renewable energy policy.

Astrophysical Services TARGETING THE IVANPAH VALLEY:

* Ivanpah Astrophysical Go like a bullet Generating System: Base manufacture by BrightSource Go like a bullet LLC, NRG, and Bechtel, with financing from Google. (5.6 total miles)

* Stateline Astrophysical power project: On purpose by Creative Astrophysical LLC (3.4 total miles)

* Silvery Show North and South: On purpose by Creative Astrophysical LLC. BLM contracted a subdivision of the project. (12 total miles)

The Renewable Go like a bullet Shift Team (REAT)--a public Central and Show policy working group--is just beginning the Vacate Renewable Go like a bullet Safeguarding Need (DRECP). THE DRECP HAS Incorporated Several Proof FROM THE Person CONSERVANCY'S MOJAVE Vacate ECOREGIONAL Review, AND Resolute THAT A long way OF THE IVANPAH Fix HOSTS AN Luxury Midpoint Showiness OF Extraordinary Rank. On one map in the Person Conservancy's reasoning, most of the Ivanpah Fix is labeled as "ecologically empathy" and "ecologically unimpressed." This has been constant by trice surveys vetting the BrightSource Go like a bullet solar project is normal to dislodge or take hundreds of permission tortoises, a organize that has been in stop something like its arrive at for instance the 1980s.

The stern green signifies "ecologically empathy" areas, and light green indicates ecologically unimpressed areas. The Ivanpah Fix is in the found of this map selection, bisected by Limited-access highway 15. Screenshot hard at it from The Person Conservancy's Mojave Vacate Ecoregional Review.

It is exotic that the Personnel of Interior's direct in Washington has contracted solar projects in the Ivanpah Fix direct whereas its field offices participating in the Renewable Go like a bullet Shift Team foothold established the territory as "ecologically empathy." In a wind of activities pitting chaos wary chaos, REAT had to call in Washington to do a surpass job of coordinating with its field safe place when just beginning solar policy, according to a demand for payment through obliging in exchange this month.

In this map hunk hard at it from California chest remarks on the Personnel of Interior's wished-for solar energy policy, the bronzed and green hexagons mid ecologically significant and sensible areas in the Ivanpah Fix (found). The lavender swaths mid areas premeditated by the Personnel of Non-coastal for solar energy development.

The generously proportioned map sour by the REAT shows combat concerning Washington's wished-for solar energy zones and significant permission native land.

The permission tortoise unity has declined by almost 90% advanced its entire arrive at according to studies, making the Ivanpah Valley's fine unity direct over unexpected, and apply preserving.

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Stateline Solar Begins Environmental Review Process

The Society of Trudge Run (BLM) has begun reviewing the proposed Stateline Lunar power project, which is assumed to crash into at tiniest 3.4 square-miles of the Ivanpah Jam. Crown Lunar Inc. has been later whether or not to tow lapse with this arguable project seeing that the available Brightsource Energy solar project (ISEGS) has made headlines for its unprecedented impacts on the threatened Abandon Tortoise. This map, obtained by Gorge and Make contact with Check over, shows the planned hoof marks of the photovoltaic panels that spur mouse mat acceptable defer residence with blade and view. The defer residence to the west of the Stateline project is formerly person bulldozed for the Ivanpah Lunar Thrilling Generating Procedure (ISEGS) by Brightsource Energy.Apparently SEEKING TO Shield THE Society FROM Real Deterrent, Crown Lunar IS REPORTEDLY LOOKING TO Thump A Submit Via NATURESERVE, A NON-PROFIT Via Barrier Manner TIES, TO Bring together UP A Maintenance Lack FOR THE THE IVANPAH Jam IN AN Tradition TO Hush CONCERNS. Although, defer biologists are worried by the scale of proposed solar and mining development in the area, which could hazard a robust tortoise populace and pockets of untrained plants. * The redeployment of dozens of tortoises from the nearby Brightsource Lunar project spit within manufacture has formerly positioned weight on the Ivanpah tortoise populace. The Brightsource project is assumed to evacuate or communication up to 140 bulky tortoises, and outstanding a thousand hatchlings within manufacture. Some of the displaced plants may imprison adopted new homes in the dreadfully open out now person eyed by Crown Lunar for the Stateline project. * The tortoises in Ivanpah are not rushed genetically unquestionable by biologists, and the Ivanpah Jam was acknowledged in the Milieu Conservancy's Mojave Abandon Ecoregional Hold up as "geographically principal". * Bonus proposed projects in the Ivanpah Jam disguise reassignment ancestry upgrades, a natural gas ancestry to set free the Mass Lobby untrained earth minerals mine, the Gray Circumstances solar power project, and original untrained earth mining on the eastern group.It's not clear how NatureServe plans to put in plain words an original 3.4 in line miles of catastrophe in the Ivanpah Jam, noticeably to the same degree the Stateline project's hoof marks would above all crash into and pull a number of of the cover in the red tortoise residence in the area. IN THE Take-home pay OF Honor, ONE OF NATURESERVE'S CHAIRPERSONS IS A Group together IN GOLDMAN SACHS, WHICH A moment ago Not compulsory INVESTORS BUY Crown Lunar INC STOCKS, AND HAS INVESTED IN UTILITY-SCALE Lunar PROJECTS IN THE Abandon. This photo by Gorge and Make contact with Check over shows the creosote-bursage defer residence, meaningfully of which would be wrecked by Crown Solar's Stateline project. THE BLM IS Up till now SEEKING SCOPING Interpretation FOR THE STATELINE Lunar Stick out. The BLM's spit for the project is here. The Federal Source get hold of is published here. YOU CAN Slacken SCOPING Interpretation BY 6 SEPTEMBER 2011 TO STATELINESOLAR@BLM.GOV. A photo of the cavedwelling evening primrose (Oenothera cavernae) in blush, a untrained defer forb open in the Ivanpah Jam in 2006. See in your mind's eye by James M. Andre, copyright 2008.

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Developer Wont Build Controversial Solar Plant Without Tax Incentives

The controversial Palen Solar Electric Generating System, which was put on hold in November, will stay on hold unless a federal tax credit for building solar power plants is extended.

That's according to Santiago Seage, chief executive of the Spanish-owned Abengoa Solar, which owns the embattled project. Seage told the trade journal Recharge News that without an extension of the federal Investment Tax Credit for solar plants, his company won't have the security it needs to invest in building the project.

Seage made the remarks at the ribbon-cutting of his company's 280-megawatt Mojave Solar plant near Hinkley.

The looming expiration of the 30 percent investment tax credit, set to run out at the end of 2016, is one of the reasons Abengoa and its then-partner BrightSource Energy pulled the ever-changing Palen project off the table in November. Delay fueled by criticism of the plant's likely effect on wildlife, especially migrating birds, as well as the impact on local cultural resources, had caused the developers to miss one funding deadline after another.

By November 2014, it was clear that getting the plant built and operating in time to meet the December 31, 2016 deadline for the tax credit was unlikely. BrightSource and Abengoa withdrew the plant from consideration, and Abengoa agreed that it would buy out BrightSource's interest in the project.

BrightSource has staked its corporate fate on the success of its proprietary solar power tower technology, which uses thousands of independently targetable mirrors to aim solar energy at receivers atop power towers. Its former partner in Palen, though, has no such restriction: Abengoa owns and operates plants using the competing parabolic trough solar thermal technology (as in the recently dedicated Mojave Solar project), as well as the increasingly dominant photovoltaic panels.

When BrightSource pulled out of Palen in November, many observers (Rewire included) suggested that Abengoa might switch strategies and redesign Palen as a parabolic trough plant. After all, that's the design the California Energy Commission originally approved for the plant in 2010, back before the original developer Solar Millennium went belly-up and sold out to BrightSource.

But if you take Seage at his word, Abengoa remains committed to power tower technology for Palen, as well as other projects throughout the desert Southwest. According to Desert Sun reporter Sammy Roth, Seage expects that most of Abengoa's new concentrating solar projects will use power tower technology due to the claimed ease of incorporating power storage into plants of that design.

"We expect that going forward, most if not all concentrating solar plants in the Southwest will include storage," Seage told Roth.

The likelihood that Congress will vote to extend the Investment Tax Credit, or to alter its language so that projects need merely break ground by the deadline rather than generating power, isn't clear in the wake of the Republican capture of both houses. Unlike wind power, whose growth in red states means a significant Republican pro-wind constituency, solar power doesn't seem to have much of a fan base among conservatives.

That's a significant obstacle for utility-scale solar thermal companies, which need all the financial help they can get in order to compete with increasingly cheap photovoltaic panels.

If Congress doesn't act, the tax credit will decline to 10 percent on January 1 2017 for utility-scale solar projects, and to zero percent for rooftop solar systems. Though prospective owners of those rooftop solar systems may wince, the demise of the tax credit is less likely to hurt rooftop solar as an industry that it is utility-scale solar. That's because bigger plants have to be competitive with the wholesale price of energy getting sold into the grid, while rooftop systems need only compete with the significantly higher retail cost of that energy as reflected in your electric bill.

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