Photo courtesy of Ormat Technologies
On April 15, the Bureau of Land Management announced the adoption of two existing categories of exemptions to ease the approval process for geothermal energy exploration on public lands.
According to the National Environmental Policy Act, a categorical exclusion avoids the need for an environmental assessment or impact report because it has been determined that a particular action will not have a significant impact on the environment.
The BLM can utilize express exemptions from either the U.S. Forest Service or the Department of the Navy to expedite review of geothermal exploration proposals, but further development would require additional NEPA evaluation. Masu.
Geothermal is a fast-growing industry that can provide renewable, sustainable energy around the clock. Unlike wind and solar power, which rely on optimal weather conditions to generate electricity, groundwater reservoirs heated by the Earth's core produce steam that can be accessed through drilling. Hot water can be used to generate electricity in generators and turbines.
“Geothermal energy is supplemented by heat sources deep in the Earth to generate baseload electricity while minimizing carbon emissions,” a BLM news release said.
“Especially abundant in the West, the BLM has authority to manage geothermal leases on approximately 245 million acres of public land (plus 104 million acres of U.S. Forest Service land). It is also used for heating and greenhouse operations. And for the aquaculture industry.”
The United States invested $74 million to fund seven geothermal projects in February as part of a plan to expand geothermal power generation capacity 20 times over the next 30 years. This energy source provides just 1% of the state's electricity, but the Department of Energy believes that number could rise to 10%.
To that point, several startups have considered creating artificial reservoirs deep beneath the earth's surface to circumvent the challenge of finding areas where hot water naturally rises.
“Geothermal energy is one of the technologies that can move our nation toward a clean energy future,” BLM Director Tracy Stonemanning said in the release. “It makes sense for other government agencies to use the same streamlined process for permitting geothermal exploration that is proven to work.”
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