The massive plot of land reserved for renewable energy production by an aging federal policy in Southern California’s Inyo County has finally gotten the go-ahead for development years after its initial announcement by the Obama Administration. 

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) finally approved the start of construction of the two first projects contained in the 10.8 million-acre Desert Renewable Energy Conservation Plan (DRECP) after an elongated environment review and years of political toggling. The photovoltaic arrays are said to be capable of powering up to 130,000 homes and generating $5.9 million in what the Bureau calls “annual operational economic benefits” to the landlocked region. 

Construction will begin as early as the week of June 13 and could soon be followed by a potential third project pending BLM approval. The agency estimated that the plan requires a total investment of $689 million in funding provided by the Biden Administration as part of a larger ambit to permit some 25,000 MW of renewable energy from onshore sources by mid-decade. San Francisco’s Clearway Energy Group has been contracted to ensure the 465 MW project installation delivery.

Once complete, they will constitute the westernmost crown jewel of the government’s 120 project portfolio. In addition, president Biden recently invoked the Defense Production Act to ramp up energy production domestically. This act has made the at-times debated use of public land for such projects part of his environmental agenda as pursued by the Interior Department, which says it is now on track to approve 48 similar developments targeting a variety of sources.