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Wind Power News: Nevada
These news and opinion items are gathered by National Wind Watch in its noncommercial educational effort to help keep readers informed about developments related to industrial wind energy. They do not necessarily reflect the opinions of National Wind Watch. They are the products of and owned by the organizations or individuals noted and are shared here according to “fair use” and “fair dealing” provisions of copyright law.
BLM deals blow to wind farm competing with would-be monument
The Bureau of Land Management dealt a new setback to energy developers who have long vied to build a wind farm in the Mojave Desert, designating the project “low priority” status. BLM’s Las Vegas Field Office issued its decision in mid-November to Crescent Peak Renewables LLC, the American subsidiary of Sweden-based Eolus Vind AB. Although not an outright rejection, the classification is an indication the project – the Kulning Wind Energy Project proposal – “may not be feasible to authorize,” according to . . . Complete story »
Efforts mount to make this sacred, scenic Nevada treasure a national monument
When the Crescent Peak Wind Project proposal was rejected, the Fort Mojave Indian Council passed a resolution in September 2019 and sent a letter to the Nevada congressional delegation requesting that the area be protected as a national monument. In 2020, national and local conservation groups launched a public awareness campaign to garner support. Efforts to protect the area were renewed early this year when Crescent Peak Renewables LLC submitted another application to the Bureau of Land Management for a 308-megawatt wind farm called the Kulning Wind Energy Project, which would be located nine miles west of Searchlight. Complete story »
Nevada dilemma: Renewable energy or national monument?
For Yuman-speaking Native American tribes, the sprawling desert lands of southern Nevada – home to Joshua tree forest, desert tortoise habitat and migration routes for bighorn sheep – carry historical and cultural significance as their “place of creation.” “This area holds the footprint of our ancestors, and past, present and future generations,” explained Nora McDowell, a former chairperson of the Fort Mojave Indian Tribe. But for energy developers, the vast Mojave Desert also represents future potential for wind or solar farms that . . . Complete story »
Push continues to get Avi Kwa’ Ame designated as National Monument
The push continues to get Avi Kwa’ Ame, or Spirit Mountain, which is sacred land, designated as a national monument. One reason why is to prevent certain development on the land. “For about 15 years our town has been fighting large industrial wind energy projects that have been proposed in our area,” said Kim Garrison Means, an advocate for the designation. One energy proposal came over the last few months. Eolus Vind AB, a Swedish wind power developer, pitching the . . . Complete story »
Nevada Democrats unveil renewable energy infrastructure bill
Nevada lawmakers are considering a massive energy infrastructure proposal that would encourage the construction of renewable energy transmission lines and electric vehicle charging stations and hasten the state’s transition away from fossil fuels. Sen. Chris Brooks, a Las Vegas Democrat, introduced a bill on Thursday that would encourage the utility provider NV Energy to prioritize building new transmission lines that can facilitate renewable energy use in homes and businesses throughout the state. The bill calls for a $100 million investment . . . Complete story »
City backs monument designation
O’Neill said the area has been the target of attempted energy development by two companies that wanted to install wind farms. According to his presentation, these industrial developments would have scarred the land and degraded the cultural resources there. Complete story »
Land battle brewing over ‘world’s largest Joshua tree forest’ in Southern Nevada
At the site of what could be Nevada’s newest national monument, a battle over land is brewing. Avi Kwa Ame, as it is known to local tribes and groups advocating for its designation as a national monument, is nestled between California’s Mojave Wilderness to the west and Lake Mead National Recreation Area to the east. The region has become known to some as the “world’s largest Joshua tree forest.” The area is considered sacred to several Southern Nevada tribes and . . . Complete story »
Proposed national monument highlights Nevada Indigenous, cultural and ecological treasures
Since the designation, two wind projects have threatened the area, and sprawl from Las Vegas continues to creep toward the mountain. Complete story »
Opinion: Corporate industrial wind energy’s low-down, sneaky, dirty, rotten lies
Windmills of old have one thing in common with the unsightly, noisy, wasteful, toxic, short-lived, fire-prone gigantic industrial wind turbines of today: they are just as unreliable. This report isn’t about small personal wind energy towers that have an important place on farms and ranches. This article concerns the monstrous 500-850 feet towers that pollute the viewshed from 36 miles away. Recently, proponents of large-scale corporate wind energy started issuing reports that such massive projects are good for rural America. . . . Complete story »
Windy, but no windfall: Why Nevada lags behind in commercial wind power
Nevada is a big player in renewable energy. But while it ranks among the top five states for both solar and geothermal energy production, it lags well behind in wind energy production, where it falls 33rd. This fact surprised KUNR’s Benjamin Payne, who last year moved to Reno from his native Illinois. Whereas that state boasts more than 50 wind farms, Nevada has only one. He decided to look into this gap, and figure out why wind makes up such . . . Complete story »