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New York just decommissioned the Indian point nuclear plant [1] due to some shady politics. The largest planned solar installation in the US was defeated by env

New York just decommissioned the Indian point nuclear plant [1] due to some shady politics. The largest planned solar installation in the US was defeated by environmental groups because it would be an eyesore [2]. At some point we’re going to have to grapple with the fact many “concerned” groups don’t actually care about climate change. Instead they use it as a stalking horse for other political projects. [1] https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=47776 https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=47776 [2] https://apnews.com/article/technology-government-and-politics-environment-and-nature-las-vegas-nevada-9bf3640dfefbc6f7f45a97c6810f5ff7 https://apnews.com/article/technology-government-and-politic...

Frondo 5y ago
Did you read article #2? The group that stopped the solar installation was something called "Save Our Mesa": > But a group of residents organized as “Save Our Mesa” argued such a large installation would be an eyesore and could curtail the area’s popular recreational activities — biking, ATVs and skydiving — and deter tourists from visiting sculptor Michael Heizer’s land installation, “Double Negative.” The group itself is not in any way an environmental group, they claim to be locals who want to save their tourism industry. Their own website: http://www.saveourmesa.org http://www.saveourmesa.org > The majority of our community’s revenue comes from tourism. We lost a lot of tourism and businesses when the shrinking lake levels of Lake Mead occurred closing a nearby beach. We have struggled but built back our economy through OHV tourism. When people come and camp/hotel for a week, they buy our gas, our groceries, eat in our restaurants, use our mechanics and parts stores. This allows these businesses to thrive thus keeping us self sufficient. Feedback from many of our Snowbirds was that they would look for new places to go, that’s lost revenue. People would not come to recreate, that’s lost revenue.
- causalmodels 5y ago
  I did read the article. Specifically, I read the second to last paragraph which states, > Although a majority of the state’s voters approved an energy transition ballot question last year, large-scale projects like Battle Born Solar have drawn backlash from conservationists, endangered species advocates and local businesses that cater to tourists. But you don't need to take anyone's word for it. Here is a local group very proud to assist Save our Mesa to kill the project [5][6][7]. If you would like to read more about how environmental and conservation groups sometimes oppose renewable energy projects, you can do so [1][2][3][4]. [1] http://archive.today/2021.06.15-141516/https://www.wsj.com/articles/solar-powers-land-grab-hits-a-snag-environmentalists-11622816381 http://archive.today/2021.06.15-141516/https://www.wsj.com/a... [2] https://www.reuters.com/article/us-solar-wars/special-report-with-solar-power-its-green-vs-green-idUSTRE7042ZR20110105 https://www.reuters.com/article/us-solar-wars/special-report... [3] https://www.nevadacurrent.com/2021/06/16/true-impact-of-highly-lauded-clean-energy-bill-unclear-say-environmental-groups/ https://www.nevadacurrent.com/2021/06/16/true-impact-of-high... [4] https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2021-07-29/san-francisco-bay-area-solar-farm-opposed-by-nimbys https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2021-07-29/san-franc... [5] https://twitter.com/BasinRange/status/1418497834949636098?s=20 https://twitter.com/BasinRange/status/1418497834949636098?s=... [6] https://twitter.com/BasinRange/status/1323327146585022465?s=20 https://twitter.com/BasinRange/status/1323327146585022465?s=... [7] https://twitter.com/BasinRange/status/1418665885263228928?s=20 https://twitter.com/BasinRange/status/1418665885263228928?s=... edit: spacing
  - Frondo 5y ago
    It seems like you're conflating several things: 1) Save Our Mesa is the group that pushed back, successfully, against this project, to further the tourism interests in their town, according to the article and according to them. 2) Some infrastructure projects "like this" (i.e. not necessarily this one, but simply projects "like this") draw backlash from environmental groups for whatever local reason. (also, this does not mean Save Our Mesa, the group responsible for stopping this project, is an environmental group.) 3) A local group (Basin and Ranch) was happy that "grass roots killed this project" and they were "happy to help" (in an undisclosed way) -- this also does not mean that "environmental groups" stopped the solar installation "because it would be an eyesore," which is what you said in your original post. Look, I get that environmental groups sometimes behave in ways that seem irrational, too focused on some small local issue (Basin and Ranch likes the tortoise habitat more than they like solar), but this kind of sliding different issues, takes, positions, etc., together is dishonest and shitty, whether intentional or not.

Frondo 5y ago

Did you read article #2? The group that stopped the solar installation was something called "Save Our Mesa": > But a group of residents organized as “Save Our Mesa” argued such a large installation would be an eyesore and could curtail the area’s popular recreational activities — biking, ATVs and skydiving — and deter tourists from visiting sculptor Michael Heizer’s land installation, “Double Negative.” The group itself is not in any way an environmental group, they claim to be locals who want to save their tourism industry. Their own website: http://www.saveourmesa.org http://www.saveourmesa.org > The majority of our community’s revenue comes from tourism. We lost a lot of tourism and businesses when the shrinking lake levels of Lake Mead occurred closing a nearby beach. We have struggled but built back our economy through OHV tourism. When people come and camp/hotel for a week, they buy our gas, our groceries, eat in our restaurants, use our mechanics and parts stores. This allows these businesses to thrive thus keeping us self sufficient. Feedback from many of our Snowbirds was that they would look for new places to go, that’s lost revenue. People would not come to recreate, that’s lost revenue.

causalmodels 5y ago
I did read the article. Specifically, I read the second to last paragraph which states, > Although a majority of the state’s voters approved an energy transition ballot question last year, large-scale projects like Battle Born Solar have drawn backlash from conservationists, endangered species advocates and local businesses that cater to tourists. But you don't need to take anyone's word for it. Here is a local group very proud to assist Save our Mesa to kill the project [5][6][7]. If you would like to read more about how environmental and conservation groups sometimes oppose renewable energy projects, you can do so [1][2][3][4]. [1] http://archive.today/2021.06.15-141516/https://www.wsj.com/articles/solar-powers-land-grab-hits-a-snag-environmentalists-11622816381 http://archive.today/2021.06.15-141516/https://www.wsj.com/a... [2] https://www.reuters.com/article/us-solar-wars/special-report-with-solar-power-its-green-vs-green-idUSTRE7042ZR20110105 https://www.reuters.com/article/us-solar-wars/special-report... [3] https://www.nevadacurrent.com/2021/06/16/true-impact-of-highly-lauded-clean-energy-bill-unclear-say-environmental-groups/ https://www.nevadacurrent.com/2021/06/16/true-impact-of-high... [4] https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2021-07-29/san-francisco-bay-area-solar-farm-opposed-by-nimbys https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2021-07-29/san-franc... [5] https://twitter.com/BasinRange/status/1418497834949636098?s=20 https://twitter.com/BasinRange/status/1418497834949636098?s=... [6] https://twitter.com/BasinRange/status/1323327146585022465?s=20 https://twitter.com/BasinRange/status/1323327146585022465?s=... [7] https://twitter.com/BasinRange/status/1418665885263228928?s=20 https://twitter.com/BasinRange/status/1418665885263228928?s=... edit: spacing
- Frondo 5y ago
  It seems like you're conflating several things: 1) Save Our Mesa is the group that pushed back, successfully, against this project, to further the tourism interests in their town, according to the article and according to them. 2) Some infrastructure projects "like this" (i.e. not necessarily this one, but simply projects "like this") draw backlash from environmental groups for whatever local reason. (also, this does not mean Save Our Mesa, the group responsible for stopping this project, is an environmental group.) 3) A local group (Basin and Ranch) was happy that "grass roots killed this project" and they were "happy to help" (in an undisclosed way) -- this also does not mean that "environmental groups" stopped the solar installation "because it would be an eyesore," which is what you said in your original post. Look, I get that environmental groups sometimes behave in ways that seem irrational, too focused on some small local issue (Basin and Ranch likes the tortoise habitat more than they like solar), but this kind of sliding different issues, takes, positions, etc., together is dishonest and shitty, whether intentional or not.