No Rush

Sometimes, in my darker moments, I really do believe that there is a vast conspiracy working against our better interests on the energy front. From The New York Times:

DENVER — Faced with a surge in the number of proposed solar power plants, the federal government has placed a moratorium on new solar projects on public land until it studies their environmental impact, which is expected to take about two years.

The Bureau of Land Management [BLM] says an extensive environmental study is needed to determine how large solar plants might affect millions of acres it oversees in six Western states — Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico and Utah.

Let me be sure I understand this. We are faced with an energy crunch and currently use an energy source that is known to pollute the environment. But the government is unwilling to allow solar projects—clean, non-polluting, and climate friendly—to proceed until it assesses the potential environmental damage?

You’d think the BLM bureaucrats would allow development to proceed while investigating environmental concerns concurrently. But noooo, it’s better to stop everything for two years while an environmental impact is assessed.

Heck, there’s no rush, no urgency, is there?

Update (7-03-08):

After less than a month, it appears that the BLM has caved on their ridiculous policy. KurzweilAI.net reports:

Under increasing public pressure over its decision to temporarily halt all new solar development on public land, the Bureau of Land Management said Wednesday that it was lifting the freeze, barely a month after it was put into effect.

Sanity prevails!