WASHINGTON – As part of President Obama's Climate Action Plan to create jobs, cut carbon pollution and develop clean domestic energy, U.S. Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell on Wednesday will make a major announcement surrounding Phase I of the Desert Renewable Energy Conservation Plan, an innovative, landscape-level renewable energy and conservation planning effort covering 10 million acres of public lands management by the Bureau of Land Management in the California desert.
Phase I is part of a larger, comprehensive effort with the State of California designed to provide a blueprint across 22 million acres of public and private land in California’s desert region for streamlining renewable energy development while conserving unique and valuable ecosystems and providing outdoor recreation opportunities. Collectively, these lands have the potential to generate up to 27,000 megawatts of renewable energy development, while meeting federal and state renewable energy and climate change goals.
The visit to Palm Springs is the second stop on Secretary Jewell’s three-state renewable energy tour to highlight Obama Administration efforts to support renewable energy on public lands and waters.
On September 9, Secretary Jewell and U.S. Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz in Boston, MA, released a collaborative strategic plan to continue accelerating the development of offshore wind energy in the United States. The plan could help enable 86,000 megawatts of offshore wind in the United States by 2050 and presents the actions and innovations needed to reduce deployment costs and timelines, and provides a roadmap to support the growth and success of the industry.
On Thursday, Sept. 15, Secretary Jewell will travel to Clark County, Nevada, to make an announcement regarding tribal energy and economic development with leaders of the Moapa Band of Paiute Indians.
The President’s Climate Action Plan calls on Interior to permit 20,000 megawatts of renewable power by 2020. Since 2009, Interior has approved 59 utility-scale renewable energy projects on public lands, including 35 solar, 11 wind and 13 geothermal projects and associated transmission infrastructure that could support nearly 15,500 megawatts of renewable energy capacity, or enough to power approximately 5.1 million homes.
In addition, Interior’s Bureau of Ocean Energy Management offshore energy development program has awarded 11 commercial wind energy leases in federal waters off the Atlantic coast. These sales encompass more than one million acres in federal waters that, if fully developed, have the potential to power over four million homes.
Who:
Sally Jewell, U.S. Secretary of the Interior
Jerry Perez, California State Director, Bureau of Land Management
Karen Douglas, California Energy Commissioner
Jeff Grubbe, Chairman, Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians
John Benoit, Riverside County Supervisor
What:
Press Conference and Signing Ceremony for the Desert Renewable Energy Conservation Plan
When:
Wednesday, Sept. 14, 2016
11:45 a.m. PDT – Media Check-In
12:00 p.m. PDT – Press Conference, Signing Ceremony and Media Availability
Where:
Santa Rosa & San Jacinto Mountains National Monument Visitor Center
51-500 Highway 74
Palm Desert, CA 92260
Media:
Credentialed members of the media wishing to attend the event are encouraged to RSVP here. Credentialed members of the media may also participate in a listen-only press conference call of the ceremony by dialing: 888-469-1349 and entering participate code: 9628424
Source: Department of Interior
