BLM Seeks Public Input on Proposed Socorro Solar Energy Project in La Paz County

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is inviting public input for the development of an environmental assessment for the proposed Socorro Solar Energy project in southeastern La Paz County. The project, proposed by EDF Renewables in October 2021, aims to produce up to 350 MW of solar energy and includes battery energy storage.

Following a solar variance review process, the BLM Arizona State Office determined it is appropriate to continue processing the Socorro Solar Project application. The next step involves public competition on the State Director’s Socorro Solar Project Variance Determination, allowing BLM to proceed with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) process, including public scoping and preparation of an environmental assessment or environmental impact statement.

The public scoping period, which began on July 1, spans 38 days and seeks input into the development of alternatives, environmental analyses, and resource protection measures. The project will occupy 3,066 acres of a nearly 6,000-acre site within a Renewable Energy Development Area (REDA) designated by the Arizona Restoration Design Energy Project Record of Decision issued by BLM in January 2013.

The clean electricity generated is expected to be delivered to the grid via the Ten West Link 500 kV bulk transmission line, which will cross the Central Arizona Project (CAP) and Interstate 10. The application includes a 30-foot-wide access road for which BLM is seeking a 40-year right-of-way.

Project information, including maps, is available on the project website within the BLM’s National NEPA Register. The environmental assessment will evaluate potential project impacts and address concerns such as Native American religious issues, threatened and endangered species, socioeconomic effects, and environmental justice. It will also propose potential mitigation measures to reduce environmental impacts.

BLM released final rules in April governing the leasing and rental of renewable energy projects on public lands. These rules were developed in consultation with the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA). Earlier this year, BLM released a draft analysis of the Utility-Scale Solar Energy Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (PEIS), identifying 22 million acres across 11 states suitable for solar development.

Public engagement is crucial in siting large-scale solar energy projects. “The public’s input during scoping will help inform the BLM’s development of a range of alternatives that will be analyzed,” said William Mack, Colorado River District Manager. “We invite our federal, state, tribal, as well as local partners, stakeholders, and the public to participate in scoping.”

The United States aims to achieve 100% clean energy by 2035. According to the National Renewable Energy Lab, meeting all electricity needs with solar alone would require around 10 million acres, or 0.4% of the country’s area.

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