California solar plant greeted with fanfare, doubts about future

As a solar farm moves forward with City Utilities of Springfield and Nixa City Council considers a larger solar development in Christian County, the world’s largest solar farm has opened in California’s Mojave Desert.

The $2.2 billion Ivanpah solar farm 40 miles south of Las Vegas is designed to deliver nearly 400 megawatts of electricity to some 140,000 homes.

Described as an engineering marvel, three towers each standing taller than the Statue of Liberty are surrounded by 100,000 mirrors apiece to reflect the sun’s rays. Inside the towers, the sunlight heats water to create steam that moves turbines and produces emissions-free electricity.

At 3,500 acres, Ivanpah is about four times larger than Central Park in New York City, and it reportedly can be seen from the International Space Station, according to Reuters.

Yet, with all the buzz, controversy follows the project. The plant is in response to controversial state and federal renewable energy mandates, and it was partially backed by a $1.6 billion loan guarantee from the U.S. Department of Energy – the same controversial program that supported failed solar panel maker Solyndra, Reuters said. In an ironic twist, the project also has created environmental concerns: changing the habitat for endangered species, such as the desert tortoises, and killing birds that fly through the extreme heat radiating from the sea of mirrors.

Ivanpah is jointly owned by privately-held solar developer BrightSource, power plant owner NRG Energy Inc. and Google Inc., according to Reuters.

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