Reclamation Announces Decision on Salt Wells Geothermal

he U.S. Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Reclamation issued the following news release:

The Bureau of Reclamation has signed a Record of Decision for the Final Environmental Impact Statement on the impacts of issuing a 20-year license authorizing a 22 mile overhead 230kV electric transmission line and a 2.5 mile buried fiber optic line as part of the Salt Wells Geothermal Project. It is Reclamation’s decision to implement the Preferred Alternative (#3) as described in the Final Environmental Impact Statement.

Reclamation and the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) received applications for electric transmission from Sierra Pacific Power Company. BLM also received two separate geothermal utilization plans and applications permits from Ormat Technologies, Inc., and Vulcan Power Company. Together the three projects are referred to as the Salt Wells Energy Projects. The Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) was prepared by BLM, pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act. As a cooperative agency, Reclamation used this EIS for its analysis of the overhead transmission line and buried fiber optic line that cross Reclamation managed lands and features.

The Project Area is located in the Salt Wells area of Nevada, southeast of Fallon, in Churchill County. The proposed transmission line and fiber optic line would be sited on a combination of private property, public land managed by the BLM and Newlands Project lands managed by Reclamation.