Calico Solar Project "Cut in Half"

There is a lot of press on the California Energy Commission's (CEC) preliminary approval of Tessera Solar LLC's Calico Solar power project.  The press is portraying Tessera Solar's project as being halved by government authorities or "crazy hippies" who are trying to save the desert tortoise instead of building a larger solar power plant.  What most people just now entering the debate do not realize is that Tessera Solar's project is actually proposed for public land, and will receive taxpayer-backed financing in the form of American Reinvestment and Recovery Act funds.

Plenty of commentators will have you believe that Tessera Solar is being wronged by the government, but consider that the company is basically dependent on government handouts to make a profit, and its profit model is based on bulldozing pristine American wilderness.   And to add insult to injury, we could generate solar energy from the rooftops of our homes, parking lots, or the tops of commercial buildings.    So before we go blaming "environmentalists" or "hippies" because that fits the most simplistic and naive model of interest groups, keep in mind that energy companies looking for sympathy have been taking from our pockets and lining Washington's pockets.  They are not the victim in the CEC's decision.

Comments

  1. AnonymousSeptember 29, 2010 at 7:14 PM

    This will be really interesting to see what CEC does during the final vote on Calico. BNSF is really mad at the lack of flood mitigation, and CEC just incorporated seemingly impossible amounts of maps, measurements, and studies the rail company wants done in its revised Soils and Water Conditions of Certification. Can they get this all done before December 31 subsidy deadlines?

    Laura

    ReplyDelete

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