Solar parks to be built on former US nuclear test sites

Decontaminated areas in the US that were once used to test various nuclear technologies could provide sites for renewable energy projects. The Department of Energy is continuing a program that offers up such unused sites. This week, the department unveiled two specific projects planned for Idaho.

According to Reuters, the US federal government is the country’s largest electricity consumer as well as its largest land manager. Through the Cleanup to Clean Energy program, the Department of Energy is preparing a number of new sites for renewable energy projects. New renewable energy facilities are expected to be built across nearly 30,000 hectares in New Mexico, Nevada, South Carolina, Idaho and Washington.

The first projects under the program are two solar parks planned for Idaho. Specifically, they will be located in areas once used to test nuclear reactors for civilian and military applications. According to Reuters, more than 50 nuclear reactors have been tested since the start of the Cold War on land managed by Idaho National Laboratory, which falls under the Department of Energy, including the first reactor prototypes for US Navy vessels. The projects will be developed by NorthRenew Energy Partners and Spitfire. They plan to build solar parks combined with energy storage, with a total installed capacity of 400 MW.

The Cleanup to Clean Energy plan, which aims to make similar sites available for renewable energy projects, was unveiled by the US government last year. According to Reuters, the plan is intended to help meet the Biden administration’s clean electricity generation goals.