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Renewable Energy

EnviroVector

 New: Statement of Qualifications (Click Here) Phone 360-790-1559  curtis@evirovector.com

 

 

Renewable Energy Projects

Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger (left, now former governor) congratulates a BrightSource  representative (right) at their groundbreaking ceremony for the Ivanpah Solar Electric generating System (ISEGS) at Ivanpah California in the Mohave Desert.  According to BrightSource, the Ivanpah project will be the first large-scale solar thermal project built in California in nearly two decades. BrightSource contends that once constructed, Ivanpah will be the largest solar thermal project in the world, nearly doubling the amount of commercial solar thermal electricity produced in the US today.  Notice the heliostat, solar mirror, in the background.  An array of heliostats will focus the power of the sun on solar receivers atop power towers.  The average 100 megawatt BrightSource Energy solar plant will consist of 50,000 heliostats.

 

Curtis Wambach, M.S., Principal and Senior Biologist for EnviroVector, took this photograph during BrightSource's ISEGS groundbreaking Ceremony in 2010.  Mr. Wambach's  project was to provide environmental permits for a transmission line that would deliver power from the ISEGS facility and other future solar facilities proposed for construction in the Mojave Desert to the Eldorado Substation in Nevada. 

 

Eldorado-Ivanpah Transmission Project (EITP)

Curtis Wambach, M.S., Principal and Senior Biologist for EnviroVector, managed environmental permits for the $350 Million Southern California Edison (SCE) Eldorado-Ivanpah Transmission Project (EITP) located along a 35 mile reach in the Mohave Desert near Las Vegas Nevada.  Mr. Wambach managed and participated in environmental permitting that included the:

  •  1) Sections 404& 401. Preparation and submittal of the Sections 404 & 401 permit applications, including the Jurisdictional Determination (JD) of dry lake beds and desert washes.,

  • 2) NEPA/CEQA.  Administration of NEPA/CEQA and the required EIS/EIR and administering conditions of approval which included:

    • Preparation of a Reclamation, Restoration, and Revegetation Plan (RRRP)

    • Weed Management Plan

    • Coordinated with consultants and Agencies in setting up a Mitigation Bank as desert tortoise mitigation in the State of California.

  • 3) Section 7.  Administration of Section 7 of the Endangered Species Act covering the Federally-threatened desert tortoise, which included:

    • Biological Opinion (BO) issued by the BLM

    • Raven Management Plan to address raven predation on juvenile desert tortoise

    • Negotiated allowable desert tortoise Take with the BLM and the USFWS

  • 4) Species Surveys.  Coordinate spring surveys and preconstruction surveys utilizing various consulting firms and non-profit organizations, which included:

    • Desert Tortoise Surveys

    • Golden Eagle and Raptor Surveys

    • Rare Plant Surveys

    • Burrowing Owl Surveys

    • Raven Surveys

    • Bighorn Sheep Surveys

  • 5) State permits included:

    • Nevada Department of Wildlife (NDOW) handling permit for the desert tortoise

    • California Department of Fish and Game (CDFG) Section 2081 California Endangered Species Act (CESA) compliance

    • Section 402 NPDES SWPPP

    • California Section 1602

  • 6) Mitigation Plans.  Coordinate preparation of Mitigation Plans that included:

    •  Cacti and Yucca Reclamation Plan

    • Jurisdictional Areas Mitigation

    • Lake Bed Restoration Plan

    • Reclamation, Restoration, and Revegetation Plan (RRRP)

    • Noxious Weed Control Plan

    • Avian Protection Plan

 

The EITP upgrades approximately 35 miles of existing single-circuit 115-kV subtransmission line to doublecircuit 230-kV transmission line between the Ivanpah Dry Lake area and the existing Eldorado Substation, constructs a new substation (Ivanpah Substation), installs upgrades within the existing Eldorado Substation, and installs a redundant telecommunications path between the Ivanpah and Eldorado substations. The redundant telecommunications path would be strung along the existing 500-kV Eldorado—Lugo transmission line for approximately 25 miles before it would be installed in a new underground duct for approximately 5 miles along the northern edge of Nipton Road to a new microwave tower outside Nipton, California. The EITP would be located in Clark County, Nevada and San Bernardino County, California near Primm, Nevada. 
 
 
  Index

 

  
 
 

Jurisdictional Waters
  A Jurisdictional Determination (JD) report was prepared along the entire Transmission line and redundant telecommunication line to determine impacts to the water of the US.  One of the goals of the report was to determine which waters are jurisdictional.  The JD report projected which wetlands are jurisdictional based on 33 CFR Part 328 – Definitions of Waters of the United States and the Arid Region Methodology.  However, the US Army Corps of Engineers makes the final determination on which waters meet the definition of Waters of the US under 33 CFR Part 328 – Definitions of Waters of the United States .  Waters of the US are regulated under Section 404 of the Clean Water Act.

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Transmission Towers through Dry Lake Bed Mojave Desert Transmission Tower on Ivanpah Dry Lake Facing City of Primm

Transmission Towers on Ivanpah Dry Lake Facing City of Primm

Ivanpah Dry Lake & Salt Brush (Atriplex sp.) Habitat

Footings of Proposed Transmission Tower Replacement in Dry Wash surrounded by Creosote Bush (Larrea tridentata)-White Bursage (Ambrosia dumosa) Habitat

Transmission Towers in valley that slopes to Ivanpah Dry Lake

Towers in Salt Brush (Atriplex sp.) Habitat in Foreground & Creosote Bush (Larrea tridentata)-White Bursage (Ambrosia dumosa) Habitat in Background

Cows in Salt Brush (Atriplex sp.) Habitat & Creosote Bush (Larrea tridentata)-White Bursage (Ambrosia dumosa) Habitat in mid-ground & Ivanpah Range in Background
 

Wildlife, Rare Plants, & Endangered Species
  Wildlife and habitat are Impacted by Transmission Projects through Ground Disturbance, Pulling and Tensioning, use of Heavy Machinery, Removal of Vegetation, and the Demolition and Placement of Lattice Transmission Towers. Transmission Towers Pose a Collision and Electrocution Hazard to Raptors and Other Birds.  Displacement of Habitat is the Primary Impact to Many Species that Depend on the Desert Environment for their Survival.  Impacts are Assessed and Mitigation Proposed for Species that may be Impacted by the Proposed Land Use.  The Desert Tortoise, Federally-listed as Threatened, is Evaluated for Impacts to the Population and to Its Habitat.  Mitigation is Proposed to the BLM, USFWS, NDOW, and CDFG to off-set Impacts to this Declining Species.  Mitigation Measures include Tortoise Exclusion Fencing, Mitigation Banking, Relocation, Raven Management, and Revegetation. 

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Burrow of Federally-listed Desert Tortoise in Mojave Desert

Desert Tortoise Exclusion Barrier on Road, Creosote Bush (Larrea tridentata)-White Bursage (Ambrosia dumosa) Habitat in background, preferred Desert Tortoise Habitat, located at the BrightSource Ivanpah Solar Energy Generation System (ISEGS) Facility Construction Site

Desert Tortoise Exclusion Fence & Road Barrier at the BrightSource Ivanpah Solar Energy Generation System (ISEGS) Facility Construction Site

Desert Tortoise Exclusion Fence Installed at the BrightSource Ivanpah Solar Energy Generation System (ISEGS) Facility Construction Site

Desert Tortoise Exclusion Fence & Transmission Line Facing the City of Primm at the BrightSource Ivanpah Solar Energy Generation System (ISEGS) Facility Construction Site

Identified the Protected Rare "Rosy Two-tone Beardtongue" (Penstemon bicolor ssp. roseus) in the McCullough Range Nevada

Identified Red-tailed Hawk on Transmission Tower in Mojave Desert.  Avian Protection Plans (APPs) are required for transmission projects in California. 

Identified Tarantula on Gravel Road In Mojave Desert

Raven Management Plan is Required for projects in the Mojave Desert to Protect Juvenile Desert Tortoise from Predation by the Raven (Corvus corax)

Gila Woodpecker (Melanerpes uropygialis) identified and photographed in the Sonoran Desert during a Wildlife Reconnaissance near Tucson, Arizona
 

Desert Mountain Ranges
  Desert Mountain Ranges in the West are Home to Desert Bighorn Sheep, which must be Considered in Land Use Actions that Occur Near their Valuable Water Sources or their Lambing areas.  Lambing Areas Typically Occur in areas greater than 3000 feet in Elevation that are Greater than 20 Percent Slopes. 

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Bighorn Sheep Reconnaissance in the McCullough Range, Nevada, following the Southern California Edison (SCE) Eldorado -Ivanpah Transmission Project (EITP)

McCullough Range overlooking the Ivanpah Valley through the Lattice Structure of a Transmission Tower.
 

Restoration Plans
  Nevada Protects Cacti and Yucca Species, which may include Preparation of a Cactus and Yucca Reclamation Plan.  Agencies may require a Reclamation, Restoration, and Revegetation Plan (RRRP) to Restore Impacted Vegetation in the Mojave Desert.

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Joshua Tree (Yucca brevifolia)  Identified in the Mojave Desert as Part of a Cactus and Yucca Reclamation Plan.  Nevada Protects Cacti and Yucca Species, which may include Preparation of a Cactus and Yucca Reclamation Plan

Joshua Tree (Yucca brevifolia) Identified in the Mojave Desert as Part of a Cactus and Yucca Reclamation Plan.  Nevada Protects Cacti and Yucca Species, which may include Preparation of a Cactus and Yucca Reclamation Plan

Mojave Yucca (Yucca schidigera)  Scattered over the Landscape Identified in the Mojave Desert as Part of a Cactus and Yucca Reclamation Plan.  Nevada Protects Cacti and Yucca Species, which may include Preparation of a Cactus and Yucca Reclamation Plan Mojave Yucca (Yucca schidigera)  Identified near the Ivanpah Dry Lake and the BrightSource Ivanpah Solar Energy Generation System (ISEGS).  Tortoise Exclusion Fence is located in the mid-ground of this photo. 
Buckhorn Cholla (Cylindropuntia acanthocarpa) is to be Protected through Conservation Measures Proposed in the Reclamation, Restoration, and Revegetation Plan (RRRP), which is Required to Restore Impacted Vegetation in the Mojave Desert The Protected Rare White-margined Beardtongue (Penstemon albomarginatus) was Identified During A Site Evaluation on the EITP Project.  This Sensitive Plant Species will be Protected through Conservation Measures Proposed in the Reclamation, Restoration, and Revegetation Plan (RRRP), which is Required to Restore Impacted Vegetation in the Mojave Desert
 

Utility Projects
 
  EnviroVector will Utilize Curtis Wambach's Experience in Managing the Environmental Permits for a $350 Million Transmission Project.  EnviroVector can Prepare and Manage Your Section 7 Consultation, NEPA/SEPA/CEQA, Section 404/401, Wetland Jurisdictional Determinations, Wildlife Issues, Mitigation Plans & Mitigation Banking, and State and Local Permits 

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We permit environmental portion of renewable energy projects

We permit environmental portion of Transmission Projects