Interior Secretary Ken Salazar On Renewables: ‘We Can’t Afford To Turn The Clock Of Progress Back To The Past’
By Jessica Goad Speaking yesterday at the National Clean Energy Summit in Las Vegas, Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar highlighted the importance of using public lands in our nation’s transition to a green economy. “We can’t afford to turn the clock of progress back to the past,” he said. Salazar discussed a number of accomplishments that the administration has achieved in promoting renewable energy on public lands, including expediting seven projects worth 5,000 megawatts and unveiling of the first wind energy project on public lands in Nevada. Altogether, he said, the Obama Administration has permitted 31 solar, wind, and geothermal projects on public lands. Also on Monday, the Departments of Defense and Interior signed a memorandum of understanding outlining a new partnership to encourage the development of renewable energy for military installations on lands managed by the Interior Department that had been previously used for defense purposes. In a report released earlier thi...