Federal Government Makes Two Landmark Deals in Green Energy

It has been a busy week for the U.S. Department of the Interior. Earlier this week, Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar approved two large-scale solar energy plants to be built on public land in California. The approval grants the U.S.-based companies access to almost 6,800 acres of public lands for 30 years. The two projects could produce up to 754 megawatts of renewable energy, or enough to power around 226,000–566,000 typical American homes. The projects will generate almost 1,000 new jobs.

 

Also this week, Salazar signed a 28-year lease with Cape Cod Associates, who will build an offshore wind farm off the coast of Massachusetts in the Nantucket Sound; it will be the first offshore wind farm in the United States. The project is worth a total of $1 billion and has been awaiting regulatory approval for nine years. The “Cape Wind” wind farm will provide electricity to about 400,000 homes in the New England area and reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 734,000 tons per year.

 

The federal government is beginning to make serious strides in building our future for renewable energy. Proposed legislation mandating higher fuel mileage for automobiles and increased tax incentives for renewable energy will propel the green sector even further. Obama even announced he would put solar panels on the White House, the first time since 1986.