Large-scale 'solar farm' technology

Large-scale ‘solar farm’ technology

BrightSource Energy is the first solar developer to break ground on a utility-scale solar project in California. Here’s a look at the Ivanpah site and its potential impact on desert species that live there:

Artist’s conception of Ivanpah project

The first phase of its six-square-mile Ivanpah facility began in the Mojave Desert near the Nevada border in October 2010. It is expected to be completed in 2012.

Bright beacons in the desert

BrightSource Energy’s three concentrating solar towers could create extreme glare, affecting motorists, pilots and birds — among the concerns about the project under construction near Primm, Nev. A closer look:

Impact on desert ecosystem

The massive solar facility will alter thousands of acres of Mojave Desert habitat. The land may look barren, but it’s a fragile landscape teeming with life:

Solar projects in the desert

Multiple large-scale solar energy projects have been proposed in California’s desert, mostly on federal land. Here is a look at those projects, which are in various stages of approval by the California Energy Commission, and the potential output in megawatts for each.

1. Solar Millennium Ridgecrest 250 megawatts 2. Beacon Solar Energy 250 megawatts 3. Abengoa Mojave Solar 1 250 megawatts 4. Hidden Hills Solar 500 megawatts

5. Ivanpah Solar Electric Generating System 370 megawatts 6. Calico Solar 664 megawatts 7. City of Palmdale Hybrid Gas-Solar 570 megawatts (520 MW natural gas, 50 MW solar)

8. Victorville 2 Hybrid Power 563 megawatts (513 MW natural gas, 50 MW solar) 9. Desert Sunlight Solar Farm 550 megawatts 10. Desert Harvest 150 megawatts 11. Rice Solar Energy 150 megawatts

12. Solar Millennium Palen 484 megawatts 13. Genesis Solar Energy 250 megawatts 14. McCoy Solar 750 megawatts 15. Solar Millennium Blythe 1,000 megawatts 16. Rio Mesa Solar 750 megawatts

17. Imperial Valley Solar 709 megawatts 18. C Solar West 250 megawatts 19. C Solar South 200 megawatts 20. Mt. Signal Solar Farm No. 1 600 megawatts 21. Centinela Solar Energy 275 megawatts

Sources: Sources: ESRI, U.S. Dept. of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management, California Energy Commission, BrightSource Energy, Basin and Range Watch. Graphics reporting by Julie Sheer. Graphic and illustrations by Doug Stevens.