Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar has announced that $305 million will fund more than 650 Bureau of Land Management (BLM) projects across the country under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009. The investments will restore landscapes and habitat, spur renewable energy development on public lands, and create jobs.
Overall, the Department of the Interior will manage $3 billion in investments as part of the recovery plan signed by the president to jump-start the U.S. economy, create or save jobs, and put a down payment on addressing long-neglected challenges so that the U.S. can thrive in the 21st century.
‘The president has said that our nation has a 'moral, environmental, economic, and security imperative to address our dependence on foreign oil and tackle climate change in a serious, sustainable manner,'’ says Salazar. ‘Many of these BLM investments, including several here in Nevada, will lay the groundwork for our clean energy future by opening the new energy frontier and creating new, green jobs here in America.’
BLM stimulus funding in Nevada will provide $26.4 million for more than 40 projects, including investments in renewable energy, habitat restoration, roads, bridges and trails, abandoned mines and capital improvements.
BLM is investing $41 million through the ARRA to advance the nation's development and transmission of renewable energy on public lands. These funds will be invested in reducing the backlog of pending applications for wind and solar projects on BLM-managed land. If approved in the permitting process, these large-scale renewable energy projects will create new jobs and increase renewable energy supplies.
In addition, these funds will be invested in the regional planning and siting of future development and transmission of wind, solar, geothermal and biomass energy. Coordinating the development and transmission of renewable energy on a regional scale will accelerate the approval of projects and the creation of jobs associated with the projects.
SOURCE: Bureau of Land Management
