Bureau of Land Management's Decision Record and Environmental

Jersey Valley Geothermal Development Project
Environmental Assessment: NV063-EAO8-091
The Jersey Valley Project is located within the Jersey Valley geothermal unit, and encompasses
approximately 8,470 acres of public and private lands in Sections 15-16, 20-22, 27-29 and 32-34,
Township 27 North, Range 40 east (T.27N. R.40E.), Mount Diablo Baseline and Meridian
(MDB&M), and the entirety of Section 3 and portions of Sections 4 and 5, T.26N. R.40E.,
MDB&M (see Figure 2).
The Proposed Action also includes the construction and operation of an approximately
27.59-mile overhead electrical transmission line originating at the proposed Jersey Valley power
plant and terminating at the proposed SPPCo. substation (see Figure 3). Table 1 shows what has
been submitted to the BLM on behalf of the Project.
Table 1: Project Submittals
Operations Plan 1 Utilization Plan 2 ROW/PoD 3
Original Revised Original Revised Original Revised
Jersey Valley April 2009 March 2010 April 2009 April 2010 n’a n/a
Transmission
Line
n/a n/a n/a nla April 2009 April 2010
New Road nla n/a n/a n/a March 2010 April 2010
I For approval to drill and test those geothermal wells located on public iands managed by the BLM which would be used for
production and injection of geothermal fluid for the Project.
2 For approval of the utilization facilities (i.e. power plant, pipelines, etc.) located on public lands managed by the BLM.
3 For those portions of the transmission line corridor and the new road located on public lands managed by the BLM.
1.3 PURPOSE AND NEED
Background
Ormat’s purpose of the Project is to commercially develop the geothermal resources within the
federal geothermal unit; to construct and operate a commercial geothermal power plant and
weilfield within the unit; and to transport generated electricity from the Project to a power
purchaser in compliance with the Nevada State mandated Renewable Portfolio Standard. The
purpose of the Project’s transmission line and electrical substation is to provide the electrical
interconnection with the existing SPPCo./Nevada Energy (NVE) electrical transmission system
at the proposed junction in an economically viable manner which minimizes transmission line
energy losses and adverse environmental impacts. Ormat needs to be able to produce geothermal
resources in commercial quantities from the Unit or the federal geothermal leases will terminate.
Agency’s Purpose and Need
Under the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 and its implementing regulations,
including 43 CFR 2800, BLM must respond to Ormat’s ROW applications. Under the terms of
the Geothermal Steam Act, its revisions of 2007, and it’s implementing regulations; and the
Programmatic Geothermal Environmental Impact Statement and its Record of Decision of
December, 2008. BLM must respond to the proposed plans, applications and programs submitted
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