MBCA Comments on Golden Currant Solar Project
MBCA has submitted comments to the Bureau of Land Management's Las Vegas Field Office about the proposed Golden Currant Solar Project's effects on bird migration. Research shows that birds are killed near solar installations because they are attracted to reflective panels they perceive as water. This solar project plus three others nearby would create an excessive array of danger for birds. MBCA's letter includes graphic data of bird presence in the area from the eBird program of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology.
Golden Currant Solar Project Needs RMP Review
MBCA and 7 other conservation groups have requested a pause in the Golden Currant Solar project variance review until a revised Bureau of Land Management Resource Management Plan is completed to replace the 1997 version. The 25-year old plan predates many changes in desert management, including updated desert tortoise status, water availability, visual resource and habitat conservation plans, plus water availability, public land access, tribal consultation and many more concerns. While this Nevada project is not within the Morongo Basin, MBCA has always viewed the entire Mojave Desert as part of "the healthy desert environment" that we seek to preserve.
