PHOTOS FROM THE U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge on the Virginia end of Assateague Island includes more than 14,000 acres of beach, dunes, marsh, and maritime forest. Within a workday’s access to millions of people, Chincoteague Refuge received 1.36 million visitors in 2010. Adjacent to Assateague National Seashore, it has a great view of Assateague Lighthouse. Visitors to this and other Virginia coastal refuges contributed an estimated $60 million to local economies in 2010.
FWS Photo

AMERICA’S GREAT OUTDOORS BEACHES GOLDEN GATE NRA Of the 85 marine and coastal units administered by the National Park Service, two national recreation areas have the highest visitation—Golden Gate National Recreation Area in California and the Gateway National Recreation Area in New York and New Jersey. The many beaches to enjoy and explore in Golden Gate include Stinson Beach, Muir Beach, Tennessee Valley Beach, Rodeo Beach, Baker Beach, and Ocean Beach. This NPS photo shows the famous Cliff House shot from Ocean Beach. In 2010, Golden Gate NRA had 14.3 million visits that contributed $264 million and 3,445 jobs to the local economy. Nationwide, coastal and marine units of the National Park System contributed $3.5 billion, not counting other Interior coastal units.NPS Photo.

RENEWABLE ENERGY ZONE IN ARIZONA

Photo:  Solar Panels.  Credit:  Wikimedia Commons.

FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Secretary Salazar Finalizes Plan to Establish Renewable Energy Zone on Public Lands in Arizona
First-ever state-wide plan to identify, set aside previously disturbed lands to encourage wind and solar energy development

WASHINGTON, DC -- Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar today announced that Interior has designated 192,100 acres of public land across Arizona as potentially suitable for utility-scale solar and wind energy development, furthering President Obama’s ‘all-of-the-above’ strategy to expand domestic energy production.

The publication of the Record of Decision (ROD) for this initiative, known as the Restoration Design Energy Project, caps a three-year, statewide environmental analysis of disturbed land and other areas with few known resource conflicts that could accommodate commercial renewable energy projects.

The ROD also establishes the Agua Caliente Solar Energy Zone, the third solar zone on public lands in Arizona and the 18th nationwide. The Solar Energy Zones are part of the Obama Administration’s efforts to facilitate solar energy development by identifying areas in six states in the West with high solar potential, few resource conflicts and access to existing or planned transmission. With the Agua Caliente zone, Interior is delivering on the promise made as part of the Western Solar Plan to identify and establish additional solar energy zones.

"This project is a key milestone in our work to spur smart development of solar and wind energy on public lands across the West," Secretary Salazar said. "Arizona has huge potential when it comes to building a clean energy economy, and this landscape-level plan lays a solid foundation for making sure that it happens in the right way and in the right places. As we advance the President’s energy strategy, we continue to work closely with states, local communities, tribes, industry, conservation and other groups to reduce potential resource conflicts and expedite appropriate projects that will generate jobs and investment in rural communities."

Since 2009, the Obama Administration has approved 34 renewable energy proposals for public lands, including solar, wind and geothermal projects. Together, they could generate 10,400 megawatts of electricity, or enough energy to power more than 3 million homes.

The lands identified in Arizona today include previously disturbed sites (primarily former agricultural areas) and lands with low resource sensitivity and few environmental conflicts. Bureau of Land Management lands in Arizona containing sensitive resources requiring protection, such as endangered or threatened wildlife and sites of cultural and historic importance, were eliminated from consideration. Additionally, the areas selected had to have reasonable access to transmission lines and load centers as well as be situated near areas with high electricity demand.

The ROD also sets standards for projects to avoid impacts to sensitive watersheds, ground water supplies and water quality and establishes a baseline set of environmental protection measures for proposed renewable energy projects. Today’s action does not directly authorize any solar or wind energy projects; any proposal will need to undergo a site-specific environmental review.

"This initiative exemplifies our ‘Smart-from-the-Start’ review process, which puts appropriate pieces in place for responsibly developing renewable energy projects on public lands," said Mike Pool, acting BLM Director. "The Arizona project can really serve as a model for future statewide analyses for responsible energy development in the West."

The new 2,550-acre Agua Caliente Solar Energy Zone is located in Yuma County near Dateland, and the BLM estimates that the zone could generate more than 20 megawatts through utility-scale solar projects. The BLM administers about 12.2 million surface acres of public lands in Arizona.

To implement the ROD, eight BLM resource management plans will be amended to identify Renewable Energy Development Areas and provide guidance on how public lands are to be used. These identified areas are within 5 miles of a transmission line or a designated transmission corridor, and are close to cities, towns, or industrial centers.

U.S. SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR KEN SALAZAR IS GOING HOME



Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar. 

FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Secretary Salazar to Return Home to Colorado

WASHINGTON, DC – Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar announced today that he will return to his home state of Colorado, having fulfilled his promise to President Obama to serve four years as Secretary. Secretary Salazar has informed President Obama that he intends to leave the Department by the end of March.

"Colorado is and will always be my home. I look forward to returning to my family and Colorado after eight years in Washington, D.C.," said Secretary Salazar. "I am forever grateful to President Obama for his friendship in the U.S. Senate and the opportunity he gave me to serve as a member of his cabinet during this historic presidency."

"I have had the privilege of reforming the Department of the Interior to help lead the United States in securing a new energy frontier, ushering in a conservation agenda for the 21st century, and honoring our word to the nation’s first Americans," added Salazar. "I thank the more than 70,000 employees at the Department for their dedication to our mission as custodians of America’s natural and cultural resources. I look forward to helping my successor in a seamless transition in the months ahead."

Secretary Salazar has helped usher in a new era of conservation to protect America’s lands, wildlife, and heritage. Under the banner of President Obama’s America’s Great Outdoors program, Interior has established ten national wildlife refuges and seven national parks since 2009; established forward-thinking protections for wildlife and preserved millions of acres of land; and implemented community-driven, science-based conservation strategies that take into account entire ecosystems and working landscapes.

"From the Crown of the Continent in Montana to the prairie grasslands of Kansas to the Everglades Headwaters in Florida, we are partnering with landowners, farmers, and ranchers to preserve their way of life and the irreplaceable land and wildlife that together we cherish," Salazar said. "We have established an enduring vision for conservation in the 21st century that recognizes all people from all walks of life."

Under Secretary Salazar’s leadership, Interior has played a keystone role in developing a secure energy future for the United States, both for renewable and conventional energy.

Since 2009, Interior has authorized 34 solar, wind and geothermal energy projects on public lands that total 10,400 megawatts - or enough to power over 3 million homes. Salazar also oversaw a visionary blueprint for solar energy development in the West and established the nation’s first program for offshore wind leasing and permitting in America’s oceans.

"Today, the largest solar energy projects in the world are under construction on America’s public lands in the West, and we’ve issued the first leases for offshore wind in the Atlantic," said Salazar. "I am proud of the renewable energy revolution that we have launched."

Salazar has also undertaken an historic overhaul of Interior’s management of oil and gas resources, implementing tough new ethics standards for all employees. He led Interior’s response to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill and split the former Minerals Management Service into three independent agencies with clear, independent missions to oversee ocean energy management and revenue collection. Interior has offered millions of acres offshore in the Gulf of Mexico for safe and responsible exploration and development and is proceeding with cautious exploration of Arctic resources. Onshore, Interior has also leased millions of acres for oil and gas development over the last four years while protecting special landscapes for hunting and fishing and other uses.

"We have undertaken the most aggressive oil and gas safety and reform agenda in U.S. history, raising the bar on offshore drilling safety, practices and technology and ensuring that energy development is done in the right way and in the right places," said Salazar. "Today, drilling activity in the Gulf is surpassing levels seen before the spill, and our nation is on a promising path to energy independence."

Secretary Salazar’s term was marked by historic progress for Indian Country with the passage of the Cobell settlement that honorably and responsibly addressed long-standing injustices regarding the U.S. government’s trust management. The President also signed into law six Indian water rights settlements, totaling over $1 billion, that will help deliver clean drinking water to tribal communities and provide certainty to water users across the West. Salazar spearheaded a sweeping reform – the first in 50 years – of federal surface leasing regulations for American Indian lands that will streamline the approval process for home ownership, expedite economic development, and spur renewable energy in Indian Country.

"President Obama has made it a priority to empower our nation’s first Americans by helping to build stronger, safer and more prosperous tribal communities," Salazar said. "This administration has been marked by a renewed commitment to honoring a nation-to-nation relationship and ensuring tribes have a greater role in federal decisions affecting Indian Country."

Salazar, a fifth-generation Coloradoan, has served his state and the nation for 14 continuous years as Colorado Attorney General, United States Senator and as the 50th secretary of the U.S. Department of the Interior.

AGENCY SHARED GOALS ON NAVAJO GENERATING STATION IN ARIZONA

FROM: U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

Interior, Energy, EPA Commit to Cooperative Working Group to Achieve Shared Goals on Navajo Generating Station in Arizona

WASHINGTON - Today the Department of the Interior, Department of Energy and the Environmental Protection Agency released a joint statement that lays out the agencies’ shared goals for Navajo Generating Station (NGS) and energy production in the region served by NGS.

In the statement, the three agencies agree they will work together to support Arizona and tribal stakeholders in finding ways to produce "clean, affordable and reliable power, affordable and sustainable water supplies, and sustainable economic development, while minimizing negative impacts on those who currently obtain significant benefits from NGS, including tribal nations."

In addition to identifying shared goals, the statement announces specific activities the agencies intend to take jointly to help achieve those goals. These actions include: 1) creating a long-term DOI-EPA-DOE NGS working group; 2) working with stakeholders to develop an NGS roadmap; 3) committing to complete the second phase of the National Renewable Energy Laboratory’s report on clean, affordable, and sustainable energy options for NGS; and 4) supporting near-term investments that align with long-term clean energy goals.

NGS is a coal-fired power plant located on the Navajo Indian reservation approximately 15 miles from the Grand Canyon and owned partially by the Interior’s Bureau of Reclamation (Reclamation). Power from the facility is distributed to customers in Arizona, California, and Nevada. Reclamation’s share of the power is used to move water to tribal, agricultural, and municipal water users in central Arizona.

The Department of the Interior, the Department of Energy, and the Environmental Protection Agency oversee other federal responsibilities or interests that relate to NGS. These include tribal trust responsibilities, protection of national parks and wilderness areas, visibility and public health protection, and clean energy development.

OBAMA ADMINISTRATION WILL ALLOW SOLAR UTILITY DEVELOPMENT ON PUBLIC LANDS

Photo Credit:  U.S. Navy  
FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
Obama Administration Approves Roadmap for Utility-Scale Solar Energy Development on Public Lands

WASHINGTON, D.C. - As part of President Obama’s all-of-the-above energy strategy to expand domestic energy production, Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar today finalized a program for spurring development of solar energy on public lands in six western states. The Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (PEIS) for solar energy development provides a blueprint for utility-scale solar energy permitting in Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico and Utah by establishing solar energy zones with access to existing or planned transmission, incentives for development within those zones, and a process through which to consider additional zones and solar projects.

Today’s action builds on the Administration’s historic progress to facilitate renewable energy development. On Tuesday, with the authorization of the Chokecherry and Sierra Madre Wind Energy Project site in Wyoming, Interior reached the President’s goal of authorizing 10,000 megawatts of renewable power on public lands. Since 2009, Interior has authorized 33 renewable energy projects, including 18 utility-scale solar facilities, 7 wind farms and 8 geothermal plants, with associated transmission corridors and infrastructure. When built, these projects will provide enough electricity to power more than 3.5 million homes, and support 13,000 construction and operations jobs according to project developer estimates.

"Energy from sources like wind and solar have doubled since the President took office, and with today’s milestone, we are laying a sustainable foundation to keep expanding our nation’s domestic energy resources," said Secretary Salazar, who signed today’s Record of Decision at an event in Las Vegas, Nevada with Senator Harry Reid. "This historic initiative provides a roadmap for landscape-level planning that will lead to faster, smarter utility-scale solar development on public lands and reflects President Obama’s commitment to grow American made energy and create jobs."

The Solar PEIS establishes an initial set of 17 Solar Energy Zones (SEZs), totaling about 285,000 acres of public lands, that will serve as priority areas for commercial-scale solar development, with the potential for additional zones through ongoing and future regional planning processes. If fully built out, projects in the designated areas could produce as much as 23,700 megawatts of solar energy, enough to power approximately 7 million American homes. The program also keeps the door open, on a case-by-case basis, for the possibility of carefully sited solar projects outside SEZs on about 19 million acres in "variance" areas. The program also includes a framework for regional mitigation plans, and to protect key natural and cultural resources the program excludes a little under 79 million acres that would be inappropriate for solar development based on currently available information.

"The Solar PEIS sets forth an enduring, flexible blueprint for developing utility-scale solar projects in the right way, and in the right places, on our public lands," said David J. Hayes, Deputy Secretary of the Interior. "Never before has the Interior Department worked so closely and collaboratively with the industry, conservationists and sportsmen alike to develop a sound, long-term plan for generating domestic energy from our nation’s sun-drenched public lands."

The signing of the Record of Decision today follows the July release of the Final PEIS, a comprehensive analysis done in partnership with the Department of Energy that identified locations on Bureau of Land Management (BLM) lands most suitable for solar energy development. These areas are characterized by excellent solar resources, access to existing or planned transmission and relatively low conflict with biological, cultural and historic resources.

"We are proud to be a part of this initiative to cut through red tape and accelerate the development of America’s clean, renewable energy," said Secretary of Energy Steven Chu. "There is a global race to develop renewable energy technologies—and this effort will help us win this race by expanding solar energy production while reducing permitting costs."

Today’s action is in line with the President’s direction to continue to expand domestic energy production, safely and responsibly. Since President Obama took office, domestic oil and gas production has increased each year, with domestic oil production at an eight-year high, natural gas production at an all-time high, and foreign oil imports now accounting for less than 50 percent of the oil consumed in America – the lowest level since 1995.

INTERIOR DEPARTMENT REPORTS CONTRIBUTION OF $385 BILLION TO THE U.S. ECONOMY

Photo:  Stock Glacier National Park.
FROM:  U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
New Report: Interior Activities Contributed $385 Billion to Economy, Supported Over 2 Million Jobs in FY 2011
Economic Engines for Local Communities Include Energy Development and Outdoor Recreation
Date: July 9, 2012
WASHINGTON -- From facilitating energy development to managing America’s public lands for tourism and outdoor recreation to assisting Indian tribes with education and economic growth, the activities of the Department of the Interior contributed $385 billion to the U.S. economy and supported more than 2 million jobs in 2011, according to a new report released today.

“The Interior Department has a uniquely diverse mission that benefits the American people by promoting tourism, outdoor recreation, energy development and other economic activities that fuel local economies,” said Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar. “This report underscores that there are real, lasting impacts on communities and small businesses across the country where Interior is helping to strengthen economies and support families.”

The report, The Department of the Interior’s Economic Contributions, highlights the impacts of the Department’s broad mission, including land and water management; energy and mineral development on public lands; encouraging tourism and outdoor recreation at national parks, monuments and refuges; wildlife conservation, hunting and fishing; support for American Indian tribal communities and Insular Areas; and scientific research and innovation.

Prepared by Interior’s Office of Policy Analysis, today’s report underscores the findings of other studies on the economic impacts of Interior Department lands and programs. For example, an earlier study found that recreation in national parks, refuges, and other public lands alone led to nearly $47 billion in economic contribution and 388,000 jobs in 2010.

Another report recently released by the Outdoor Industry Association showed that 140 million Americans spent $646 billion on hunting, fishing, hiking, and other outdoor recreation on public and private lands, including on the 500 million acres of public lands managed by Interior agencies.

“Under President Obama’s America’s Great Outdoors initiative, we are seeking to connect Americans, especially young Americans, to nature by providing more outdoor recreation opportunities. The President has also launched a major initiative to work with states and communities across the country to promote domestic and international tourism – America’s #1 export – at places such as national parks and national wildlife refuges,” said Salazar. “President Obama’s focus on expanding responsible domestic energy development is working alongside our 21st century conservation, travel and tourism agendas to reinvigorate local communities – particularly in rural America.”

The major highlights of the Department of the Interior’s Economic Contributions report include:
The 435 million recreational visits to Interior-managed lands in 2011 supported about 403,000 jobs nationwide and contributed nearly $48.7 billion in economic activity.

Many jobs associated with recreation on Interior lands are located in rural communities, including 18,000 jobs in Utah, 16,000 jobs in Wyoming, 14,000 jobs in Arizona and 10,000 jobs in Colorado.
Energy development and mining on Interior-managed lands and offshore areas supported about 1.5 million jobs and $275 billion in economic activity. Most of these jobs are in Texas, Wyoming, Louisiana, New Mexico, California, and Florida.

Interior provides services to 1.7 million American Indians and Alaska Natives from 566 federally recognized tribes. Activities on tribal lands contributed around $12 billion in economic output and supported nearly 126,000 jobs. Support for tribal governments through loan guarantees and other aid contributed an additional $1.2 billion in economic output and about 9,500 jobs.

Interior’s water supply, forage and timber activities, primarily on public lands in the West, supported about 290,000 jobs and $41 billion in economic activity.

Investments in construction and maintenance totaled approximately $2.6 billion, which contributed about $7.2 billion in economic activity and supported almost 49,000 jobs.

Interior administers a variety of grants and payments programs. These programs support activities such as reclamation of abandoned mine lands, historic preservation, conservation activities, and tribal governments. Grants and payments totaling $4.2 billion in 2011 contributed about $10 billion worth of economic activity and supported about 84,000 jobs.

PUBLIC LANDS IN NEVADA NOW HOST LARGE-SCALE SOLAR ENERGY PROJECT

FROM:  U.S. DEPARTMENT OF INTERIOR
Salazar ‘Flips the Switch’ on First Large-Scale Solar Energy Project on Public Lands to Provide Power to the Grid
Nevada’s Silver State North Marks Milestone in Renewable Energy
PRIMM, Nevada – As part of President Obama’s all-of-the-above approach to energy, Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar “flipped the switch” on the Enbridge Silver State North solar project, the first large-scale solar energy facility on U.S. public lands to deliver power to American consumers.

This milestone is in line with the administration’s broad commitment to expanding production of all sources of American made energy, including from renewable sources, such as wind and solar, which has doubled in the President’s first term, as well as domestic production of oil and gas resources, which have increased each year the President has been in office.

“This is a landmark day for solar energy and for the nation,” Salazar said at the dedication ceremony with state and company officials. “Silver State North was the first solar project we approved on public lands in Nevada and --18 months later -- the first of our priority projects to provide clean energy to the power grid. This is a model of industry and government working together to strengthen local economies, generating good jobs and affordable, reliable and sustainable power.”

The Interior Department has undertaken an unprecedented approach to permitting renewable energy on public lands. Prior to 2009, there were no solar energy projects permitted on public lands. Under Secretary Salazar and Bureau of Land Management Director Bob Abbey’s leadership, Interior has authorized 29 large-scale renewable energy projects on or involving public lands, including 16 solar facilities, 5 wind farms, and 8 geothermal plants. When completed, these projects will provide more than 6,500 megawatts of power to communities across the West, enough to power more than 2 million homes.

“Public lands provide Americans with vital mineral and agricultural resources, as well as recreational opportunities that help power local economies and generate jobs around the nation,” said Bob Abbey, Director of the Bureau of Land Management. “Today in Clark County, Nevada, we are adding solar energy to that public lands’ portfolio of benefits. This project symbolizes a new partnership between government and industry that can responsibly tap the immense renewable energy resources of this great state, provide clean, reliable power to homes and businesses, and open a new chapter in the beneficial use of our nation’s public lands.”

Located 40 miles south of Las Vegas, Nevada, Silver State North is a 50-megawatt plant that will use photovoltaic technology to generate enough power for about 9,000 Nevada homes. Developed by First Solar and owned by Enbridge, the project employed more than 380 construction workers during peak construction and 650 individuals over the course of the project. NV Energy has a power purchase agreement to sell the solar project’s electricity to the Nevada market.

By harnessing the area’s vast solar resources, the Silver State North facility generates electricity with no air emissions, no waste production, and no water use. The plant, using technology with the smallest carbon footprint of any PV solar system, displaces about 42,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide annually – the equivalent of taking 8,000 cars off the road. The project site is strategically located near a major transmission hub.

Constructed on 618 acres of public land managed by Interior’s Bureau of Land Management, the solar project underwent full environmental analysis and public review. The BLM worked closely with federal, state and local partners, members of the environmental and conservation community, and interested stakeholders to protect wildlife and advance this environmentally sound project. First Solar and the BLM worked in concert with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to develop a relocation/translocation plan for desert tortoises found on the site. The BLM also required a natural color palette for painted structures and controlled night lighting, designed to reduce visual impacts on the local community.

The Bureau of Land Management oversees more than 2.5 million acres in Clark County, Nevada, including over 1.1 million acres managed for conservation. This includes over 709,000 acres of habitat the BLM has designated primarily for the conservation of the threatened desert tortoise.