Public comments sought on Utah geothermal project environmental assessment

Downtown Beaver, Beaver County, Utah (source: Ken Lund, flickr/ Creative Commons)

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Utah is inviting the public to review and comment on the Environmental Assessment of the Bailey Mountain Geothermal Exploration Project in Beaver County, Utah. Comments must be submitted by March 24, 2022 to be considered.

Ormat Nevada, Inc. is planning to explore the geothermal energy production potential of the region approximately four miles north of Milford. The area of interest encompasses approximately 1885 acres. Ormat Nevada plans to drill up to 20 geothermal exploration wells within public lands managed by BLM.

BLM provides sites for environmentally sounds development of renewable energy on public lands to support the Biden-Harris administration’s goal of achieving carbon pollution-free power by 2035, as well as the Energy Act of 2020’s direction to permit 25 GW of solar, wind, and geothermal power production on public lands no later than 2025.

Comments that provide new technical or scientific information relevant to the project will be deemed most useful. Expressions of opinion or preferences will also be considered in the decision-making process, however, may not receive responses. The relevant documents, as well as the instructions to comment, can be accessed via the BLM ePlanning website.

Source: Bureau of Land Management