Staff Compiled

The Bureau of Land Management is getting a multimillion dollar face
lift, thanks to the federal economic stimulus package. Interior
Secretary Ken Salazar made the announcement at the Red Rock
Conservation Area near Las Vegas over the weekend. The desert
area’s fire station was one of several facilities slated to
receive solar panels under the effort.

The money is part of the $3 billion sent to the Interior
Department under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

The funds will be used to update BLM facilities, trails and
roads, as well as help jettison renewable energy projects
around the country. Salazar did not offer an estimate on how
many jobs would be created by the BLM spending, but the
Secretary did say the total funding package for the Interior
Department is expected to create approximately 100,000 jobs.

The department said early half the funding - roughly $143
million - will go toward new construction, deferred maintenance
and energy efficiency upgrades on existing facilities. In
addition, $37 million will address habitat restoration, 53.4
million for abandoned mine cleanup and $15 million to construct
and repair recreational trails.

An important allocation is the $41 million slated to help alleviate
the backlog of pending applications for solar and wind energy
projects on BLM lands, a move sure to be applauded by the renewable
energy companies which have been waiting for months.