New Geothermal Project Approved for Mammoth Lakes

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The Bureau of Land Management and the U.S. Forest Service Inyo National Forest signed on Aug. 13, 2013 the Record of Decision approving a new 40-megawatt geothermal project near Mammoth Lakes in Mono County, Calif.

Under the terms of the Record of Decision for the Environmental Impact Statement/Environmental Impact Report, the Casa Diablo IV Geothermal Development Project will be built on lands administered by the Inyo National Forest and on private lands within four existing federal geothermal leases. The project will include construction of a new geothermal power plant, up to 16 new production and injection wells, multiple pipelines and an electric transmission line.

Ormat Nevada Inc. will develop the project on public and private land, and the project will generate more than 180 construction jobs.  When completed, the project would produce enough energy to power 36,000 homes.

BLM’s review of the project began with scoping meetings in 2011, and no changes were made to the final EIS/EIR released in July 2013. The document was jointly prepared by the BLM, Inyo National Forest, and Great Basin Unified Air Pollution Control District, in compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). The cooperating agencies identified Alternative 3, the Modified Pipeline Alternative, as the “Agency Preferred” alternative in the final environmental document because of its reduced environmental impacts relative to the applicant’s original proposed action.

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