Renewable Energy: Lands throughout the Sagebrush State

Nevada is home to incredible wildlands and some of the country’s best renewable energy resources. Solar, wind and geothermal projects are vital for our clean energy future, and they must be carefully planned to limit negative impacts to the environment, plants and animals on our public lands.

Projects like the Dry Lake Solar Energy Zone outside Las Vegas have made Nevada a leader on smart renewable energy development. However, sensitive wildlands are threatened by badly located proposals. The Crescent Peak Wind Energy Project was one such badly located proposal that has been canceled, thanks in part to the efforts of The Wilderness Society and our conservation partners, local community members, Indigenous tribes, sportsmen and others.

Designating additional good zones for solar projects and ensuring that all renewable energy and transmission development is steered clear of important wildlands and wildlife habitat will ensure future success.

Nevada is a hotspot for renewable energy and showcases the importance of responsible development. But the state must steer big energy projects away from important plant and wildlife habitat, while guiding solar, wind and geothermal projects to lower-impact places that are less important for threatened species like the Mojave desert tortoise. The Wilderness Society works to find these lower-impact places, which will help create additional responsible renewable energy successes like the Dry Lake Solar Energy Zone.

Unfortunately, public lands in Nevada are at risk from proposals for development in the wrong locations. For example, the Crescent Peak Wind Energy Project was proposed within unprotected lands in southwestern Nevada. The site is surrounded by protected lands, including land that has been officially designated as an Area of Critical Environmental Concern to protect the threatened Mojave desert tortoise. The Castle Mountains National Monument and Mojave National Preserve are nearby. The project would have damaged wildlands in a stunning Joshua tree forest that is also home to sensitive wildlife like the mule deer. Our work to stop this proposed project has been successful. We are now working to establish new protections for this amazing wild landscape.