Final environmental analysis released for $1 billion desert solar project

In a key step toward construction, the final environmental analysis for the Desert Quartzite Project has been released, the Bureau of Land Management announced Thursday.

The $1 billion solar project is slated to sprout up in a stretch of BLM-administered land eight miles to the south of Blythe, 10 miles south of I-10.

The site would produce enough energy to power 117,000 homes, churning out an electrical output of 450 megawatts.

The analysis is composed of the “Final Environmental Impact Statement and Environmental Impact Report (EIS/EIR) and California Desert Conservation Area Land Use Plan Amendment”, according to BLM.

The publication of the Notice of Availability in the Federal Register will now open a 30-day protest period as well as a 60-day governor’s consistency review.

It’s estimated that the project will generate 870 jobs during peak construction.

According to the Environmental Impact Statement, the company behind the project is Desert Quartzite LLC, which is a subsidiary of First Solar Inc.

KESQ