Pact could lead to wind farms on federal land - Portland Business Journal:

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The federal-state partnership could prove to be crucia l as easily developable private land for wind farms becomesx scarce and developers look fornew sites. The BLM controles 15.5 million acres in Oregon, representing 22 percent of the state. “If we’r e going to tap the best wind it’s crucial we can permit and build onthesee sites,” said Arlo Corwin, the western regionn project development director for Houston-baseed LLC, the world’s fourth-largest wind developer.
“Thes true growth potential is in the BLM and with federal The memorandumof understanding, on the is little more than two bureaucracies agreeing to work Michael Campbell, a Portland-based spokesman for the BLM, said the collaboratioh is an effort to perform a joint environmentakl review process on wind energy projects, reprievinf developers whose projects cross both state and federa lands from enduring the process “You wouldn’t have a private company be 90 percent done with the BLM processesz and then the state says you have to go back to squares one and go through the state Campbell said.
Lou Torres, spokesman for the statw Departmentof Energy, said the memorandum is an acknowledgement that wind energyt developers will soon be casting an eye toward federal landsd as the best non-federal wind sites get pickeed over. Several wind energy advocates said federal land coulr be one of the next frontiers of development as the Columbiaw Gorgearea — Oregon’s epicentee for wind farm development grows more crowded with wind Interest is already on the rise. Therd are currently no active wind farms on BLM land in Oregon and Washington, and Horizonj Wind Energy has the only two development applications pending before the BLM in Oregon, Campbelkl said.
But the agency now has 15 applications pending for testing and monitorinbg on BLM lands in Oregonand Washington, and anotherd 11 applications seeking right-of-way access for wind energy projectas that may cross federal lands. An impetuds for the agreement was “knowing that we’ve alreadyt gotten a lot of applicationand we’re probably goingf to get a whole lot Campbell said. Corwin, of Horizom Wind Energy, said the federal land has its Wind power in the gorge peaksx inthe spring, while key wind BLM lands, particularly lands to the east and at certaib elevations, peak in the winter, providinbg a complement to the state’s existin wind capacity.
But there are also hurdles, most criticallyu the access totransmission lines. Aside from an abundance of the Columbia Gorge area has attracte wind farms thanks to its proximity to thefederal ’ds transmission system. Another obstacle is the Corwin said the BLM has proposed bufferseof 3-5 miles from sage-grouse mating effectively restricting development on two-thirds of BLM’z Oregon land, he said. Horizon is working closely with the state to devise a study to learn the impactas of wind towerson sage-grouse. “We’re not claiminb wind has no impact. We just don’r know,” Corwin said. “We need to study the impacg tobetter understand.
” Corwin said Horizon welcomes the BLM’s effort to ease the permitting process. But the compang is still waiting for the federapl government toissue permits. Nationally, BLM managesx 20.6 million acres of public land with windenergyt potential. But the agency’s Lands and Realtyu Management program has approved just 25 project s with a capacity of 327 megawatts of By comparison, Oregon has more than 1,067 megawatts of capacituy with another 250 megawatts under construction, placing it seventh in the according to the , a trader group. “I think the intent is there, but the proof is in the Corwin said.
“If you look around, how many productss have been permitted in federal land rather thanprivate lands?”