Parump Valley News 5-12-10

Solar energy interest began at 2002 conference

FURNACE CREEK, Calif. -- All the interest in solar energy in Amargosa Valley began with a presentation before a national Brownfields conference in Boston in 2002, in which consultants were trying to find a use for the old Barrick Bullfrog Mine near Beatty.

The Brownfields Program seeks to rehabilitate properties contaminated by industry.

"What we came away with was the Amargosa Valley had some of the highest solar radiation in the country," Nye County contractor Eileen Christensen, the principal scientist for BEC Environmental Inc., told attendees at the annual Devil's Hole workshop last week. "Within six months of that presentation we had 111 sections of land applied for from the BLM."

As of now, Nye County has 32 renewable energy projects county wide, but many of them won't materialize due to problems with water or transmission, she said.

"The chances are they are not going to develop a majority of those projects," Christensen said. "We're talking about billions of dollars in financing in today's economy."

Some of the companies which filed for rights-of-way with the U.S. Bureau of Land Management -- like Abengoa, which is interested in developing land at Lathrop Wells -- have filed for multiple locations, not only in Nevada but in other states.

"They start the process, and depending on how fast the process moves in any given state, they tend to focus on that particular project," Christensen said.

Some "active" applicants haven't been seen since initial talks, she said.

Some companies were so uninformed, they thought they could hook up to a water utility in Amargosa Valley, Christensen said. Some holders of water rights in Amargosa Valley don't want to sell them, reducing the number of projects that will be permitted, she said.

"We have enough water to support 3,600 megawatts of power," Christensen said. "That gives you some level of comfort for all those projects proposed in Amargosa Valley."

On the front burner are plans by Solar Millenium to build two 242-megawatt, concentrated solar power plants in Amargosa Valley. That will be enough to supply electricity for 150,000 homes.

But if Solar Millenium builds the first phase, Christensen said, "They don't have sufficient transmission for the second phase of their project to wheel the power away."

Jason Paul Higgins, Solar Millenium director of project development and planning, said he expects the final environmental impact statement for their project to be completed next month. Higgins said the company should be able to qualify for the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, also known as the stimulus package, which converts a 30-percent investment tax credit passed during the Bush administration in 2008 into a grant if they spend at least 5 percent of their construction costs by Dec. 31.

While most Nevada utilities, like NV Energy, will be required to get at least 25 percent of their power from renewable sources by 2025, Higgins predicted in California the standard will be 33 percent by 2020.

Solar Millenium last fall decided to switch from a wet-cooled solar power plant to dry cooling, which will use 91 percent less water but result in less energy efficiency and higher capital costs, Higgins said.

It is worth the cost environmentally, he added.

"Whether it was from the Park Service, a local Amargosa resident that was concerned about their well, whether it was Nye County, just about any spectrum of individual who sat in the audience during those scoping meetings brought up water concerns," Higgins said.

"Complications with the agencies, environmental groups, future economic development plans, that was a big concern of a lot of the residents out there: If you use up all the water in the first project, how is anybody else going to build?"

Higgins fielded questions on environmental issues.

How much wind could the solar mirrors withstand? Up to 35 mph, he said.

How will they control dust on the large amount of land cleared for solar panels? Higgins said that's an issue the company is working on for the final EIS.

"Currently there are no approved dust palliatives for this area on BLM land. We've been talking with several different companies that have organic dust palliatives out that will not have any kind of chemical runoff. That's the big concern is the downstream water," Higgins said.

Rick Felling, Nevada Division of Water Resources chief hydrologist, told attendees solar companies that want to move water rights away from Devil's Hole would be able to do so.

State Engineer's Order 1197, issued last year, denied applications to appropriate water or change the point of diversion within 25 miles of Devil's Hole. For projects where multiple water rights are required, the state engineer will consider the net impact on Devil's Hole.

Felling said 16 solar plants are proposed in the Amargosa Desert hydrographic basin, 12 are for concentrated solar power plants, and 11 are considered active.

Together, they would produce 3,500 megawatts of power and cover 44,000 acres, he said.

The yield of the Amargosa Desert is 24,000 acre feet of water per year, Felling said, but with the water rights already made available, 25,000 acre feet have been appropriated, of which 21,000 acre feet are irrigation water rights.

Water rights for solar power would be worth more than irrigation, creating an incentive to sell them, Felling said.

"They can go and purchase these water rights and transfer them to a new place of use," Felling said. "The proposed use of the water rights, if they were to be transferred to solar, are farther from Devil's Hole than they currently exist, so that should not be a problem."

Higgins said converting to dry cooling means Solar Millenium will only use one-tenth of an acre foot per acre of development. An acre foot is 326,000 gallons, or enough to supply two families for one year.