A desert wash cuts directly across the Jove Solar Project footprint.
Solar farms can run together at large scale.
Installation of fences then occurs.
Next comes installation of other infrastructure.
More restrictions occur to animal movement.
In this case, this isn’t what the Federal government had in mind with regard to the approval process.
The approved design does not allow for any construction in the wash; instead, it leaves the natural channel running throughout the site open.
How a desert wash changed the approved project
The U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has permitted the 600 MW Jove Solar Project located in La Paz County, Arizona.
Enough electricity is expected from Jove Solar to meet the annual needs of around 180,000 households.
The project will occupy approximately 3,535 acres of land in southeastern La Paz County.
Tonopah is located about 30 miles east of the site.
The BLM analyzed numerous alternatives during the environmental assessment process for the Jove Solar Project.
An environmental factor impacted the project analysis discussions time after time.
There is a desert wash that runs through the Jove Solar Project area.
When developing through it was discussed – instead of developing through the wash – the approved alternative avoided construction in the wash completely.
The BLM decision left the wash as an open passageway through the site, maintained wildlife habitat connectivity, and avoided sensitive environmental areas.
Unlike fencing off portions of the development as part of the overall facility, the wash will remain as a passageway through the landscape.
Why the project required more than solar panels
Not avoiding the wash was just a single aspect of the proposal.
Electricity production and delivery were the larger goals.
The Bureau of Land Management has given approval for the Jove Solar Project to produce electricity at levels of up to 600 MW.
There may be incorporation of a battery energy storage system into the project, according to the Jove Plan of Development.
Producing electricity is only the beginning – it has to be delivered to the grid.
The approved project will tie into the Cielo Azul 500 kV Switch Station and the Ten West Link Transmission Line.
These two facilities currently make up part of the regional transmission network.
As a result, the project already has a pathway for moving electricity beyond the site.
As planning continued for this project, it evolved into a mix of generation, transmission access, and design decisions made for reducing negative impacts on local ecosystems.
After much consideration, federal officials selected the Wash Avoidance Alternative as their preferred option for approval.
The Wash Avoidance Alternative was designed so that both the natural channel and utility-scale energy production could coexist.
What the final decision leaves behind
Like many large energy projects, it too will alter the landscape where it will be developed.
Unlike most large energy projects, one distinguishing characteristic will persist.
The wash that passes through the project area will continue to act as an open corridor and will not become part of the continuous footprint of a utility-scale development.
The decision to approve this project represents a balancing point between renewable energy development on public lands and specific environmental concerns associated with each individual site.
The corridor that remained open for wildlife
Although the Jove Solar Project was approved, the wash remained intact.
Wildlife connectivity was preserved.
Since January 2021, the BLM has approved more than three dozen renewable energy projects and exceeded its goal of permitting 25 gigawatts of renewable energy by 2025.
Once completed, the amount of electricity generated by the Jove Solar Project will ultimately determine how successful it will be.
Without the preserved wash and continued wildlife connectivity, the project may have been remembered for its size alone.
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