MAP OF SOLAR ENERGY STUDY AREAS FOR IN-DEPTH STUDY IN
CALIFORNIA
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and the Bureau of Land
Management (BLM (the Agencies) are preparing a draft Programmatic
Environmental Impact Statement (PEIS) pursuant to the National
Environmental Policy Act to evaluate utility-scale solar energy
development in six Western states: Arizona, California, Colorado,
Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah. In the course of the PEIS analyses,
the Agencies have identified a number of tracts of BLM-administered
land for in-depth study for solar development. Four study areas
have been identified in California: Imperial East (12,830 acres),
Iron Mountain (109,642 acres), Pisgah (26,282 acres), and Riverside
East (202,295 acres). The attached map shows the locations of these
solar energy study areas. About the Solar Energy PEIS The Agencies
are preparing the Solar Energy PEIS to reach goals established by
Congress, as set forth in Title II, Section 211 of the Energy
Policy Act of 2005, and in accordance with Executive Order 13212,
Actions to Expedite Energy-Related Projects, and in response to the
Secretary of the Interior’s Secretarial Order No. 3285 issued March
11, 2009. On the basis of the information and analyses developed in
the PEIS, the Agencies will develop and implement agency-specific
programs that would establish environmental policies and
environmental impact mitigation strategies for solar energy
development. Public Comment Solicitation On June 30, 2009, the
Agencies issued a Federal Register Notice of Availability informing
the public of the availability of the solar energy study area maps,
and soliciting public comments for consideration in identifying
environmental issues, existing resource data, and industry interest
with respect to the proposed study areas. Some or all of the
proposed solar energy study areas may be found appropriate for
designation as solar energy zones in the future. Criteria for
identifying the study areas are listed in the Notice of
Availability. The public comment period ends September 14, 2009.
Comments on the solar energy study areas may be submitted
electronically through the public comment form on the Solar Energy
Development Programmatic EIS Information Center Web site at
http://solareis.anl.gov. Written comments can also be mailed to
Solar Energy PEIS, Argonne National Laboratory, 9700 S. Cass
Avenue--EVS/900, Argonne, IL 60439. For More Information Copies of
the solar energy study area maps, Federal Register notice, and
other information about the solar energy study area maps and the
Solar Energy PEIS are available on the Web site at
http://solareis.anl.gov. For questions regarding map content,
please contact Linda Resseguie, BLM Washington Office,
[email protected], 202-452-7774. For questions regarding use
of the GIS data or GIS-enabled maps, please contact Brian Cantwell,
Argonne National Laboratory, [email protected], 630-252-6802.
Imperial Reservoir
KOFA NATIONALWILDLIFEREFUGE
CIBOLA NATIONALWILDLIFE REFUGE
HAVASU NATIONALWILDLIFE REFUGE
IMPERIALNATIONALWILDLIFE REFUGE
SONNY BONO SALTONSEA NATIONALWILDLIFE REFUGE
SAN DIEGONATIONALWILDLIFE REFUGE
IndianWells Indio
Poston
La Quinta Coachella
Midland
Thermal
DesertCenter
Aguanga
Mecca
Oasis
Quartzsite
BlytheEastBlythe
WarnerSprings
Ehrenberg
Ripley
MesaGrande
Afton Crucero
Barstow YermoDaggett
Kelso
Laughlin
NewberrySprings
Harris
Griffith
Goffs
PaloVerde
RamonaJulian
Niland
San DiegoCountry EstatesFernbrook
Cibola
Calipatria
EucalyptusHillsMorenoSantee
FlinnSpringsJohnstownGlenview
BorregoSprings
Westmorland
Bostonia AlpineHarbisonCanyon
Descanso
GraniteHillsSuncrest
MountLagunaPineValley
CalavoGardensRancho San DiegoJamachaJunction Jamul
Glamis
ImperialPlasterCity
Live OakSprings
SeeleyCoyoteWells
El CentroHoltville
BoulevardCampo
Tecate
Heber
Jacumba
Ogilby
Andrade YumaKinterDome
BlaisdellLigurta
FortunaFoothillsSomerton
Wellton
Gadsden
San Luis
BullheadCity
Ludlow
MohaveValleyWillowValley
FennerNeedles
Essex
Yucca
BagdadAmboy
TopockFranconia
CadizDesertHills
Chubbuck
BigBearCity
BigBearLake
LakeHavasuCity
JoshuaTreeYuccaValleyMorongoValley Rice
TwentyninePalms
CherryValleyBeaumont BanningCabazon
Desert HotSprings
VidalJunction
SanJacinto
Bluewater
PalmSprings
Bluewater
ValleVista
VidalBigRiver
EastHemet
Parker
ThousandPalms
PineCoveIdyllwild
CathedralCity
MountainCenter
RanchoMiragePalm DesertCountry
BermudaDunesPalmDesert
R3
S80
3
S80S80 S80
95
95
95
115
California
Nevada
Arizona
Mojave National Preserve
Joshua TreeNational Park
El CentroNaval AuxiliaryAir Station
Yuma Proving Ground
Yuma MarineCorps AirStation
TwentyninePalms MarineCorps Base
Fort Irwin
Chocolate Mountain NavalAerial Gunnery Range
BarstowMarine CorpsLogistics Base
Barry M.Goldwater AirForce Range
Salton SeaNaval TestRange (Closed)
ImperialEast
RiversideEast
IronMountain
PisgahMohaveCounty
Riverside County
San Bernardino County
Clark County
La Paz County
Yuma County
Imperial CountySan Diego County
ClevelandNationalForest
San BernadinoNationalForest
15
8
10
88 8
15
40
Agua CalienteReservation
Augustine Reservation
BaronaReservation
Cabazon Reservation
CahuillaReservation
Capitan GrandeReservation
Chemehuevi Reservation
Cocopah Reservation
Colorado RiverReservation
Fort Mojave Reservation
Fort Yuma(Quechan)Reservation
Torres-MartinezReservation
Santa Ysabel Reservation
ViejasReservation
Twenty-NinePalmsReservation
SycuanReservation
Soboba Reservation
Ramona Reservation
CuyapaipeReservation
Santa Rosa Reservation
SanPasqualReservation
RinconReservation
Paumaand YuimaReservation
MorongoReservation
Mesa Grande Reservation
Los Coyotes ReservationLa Jolla Reservation
Inaja andCosmitReservation
247
111111
86111
186111
79
18
94
177
94 8
86
8 280
67
111
243
18
74
58
80
86111
111
115
111
95
78
67
78
38
38
94
78
111
95
74
72
7125
195
86
86
111
62
86
78
76
86
54
86
9898
111
74
905
78
243
905188
79
98
78
86
18
79
86
78
79
74
78
18
247
79
79
7
115
62
72
78
79
86
115
163
18
72
74
78
115
18
62
95
371
95
94
247
Solar Energy Study Areas in CaliforniaMap Prepared July 21,
2009
Surface Management AgencyAs of 3/26/2009Tribal LandsBLMBOR
DODDOEFWS
NPSOTHERUSFS
SOL136
Property of the U.S. Departments of Energy and the Interior for
Use in preparation of their Programmatic Environmental Impact
Statementto Develop and Implement Agency-Specific Programs for
Solar Energy Development
0 2 4 6 8 10Miles0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16Kilometers
SanFrancisco
San DiegoLos Angeles
California
State LineCounty Boundary
Existing Designated Corridor (See Note 2) (as of 7/21/2009)Solar
Energy Study Area (as of 6/5/2009)BLM Lands Being Analyzed for
Solar Development in PEIS (as of 6/5/2009)
NOTE 1Revisions to the National Landscape Conservation
Systemincluded in Public Law 111-11 are not yet reflected in this
map.NOTE 2Designated Corridors are developed for federal land use
planningpurposes only and are not applicable to state-owned
orprivately-owned land.