The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) will utilize a $1.2 million investment from President Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) to start assessing targeted updates to West-wide energy or Section 368 corridors for quick deployment of transmission infrastructure.
The analysis will examine potential changes to the designations expected to strengthen energy security, promote renewable energy development in the West, improve reliability, relieve congestion and enhance the capability of the national grid to deliver electricity.
About 673 miles of seven designated energy corridors are anticipated to be modified. The seven prioritized, specific energy corridors will affect 19 resource management plans across Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah, and Wyoming. The project’s total value is worth $1.9 million.
The announcement is central to the Investing in America agenda and supports broader Biden-Harris Administration efforts on efficient siting and permitting of transmission lines.
The BLM will evaluate recommendations for revisions, deletions, and additions of the corridors to modify some of the designated West-wide corridors, in part to avoid known resource and environmental conflicts.
