BLM Approves Data Center on Public Land Using Solar Farm Review
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- BLM approved the switch on June 26, with Las Vegas field office manager Bruce Sillitoe concluding a 19 MW solar farm and a 167 MW data center are "substantially the same" via a Determination of NEPA Adequacy, bypassing a new environmental review or public comment.
- Townsite Solar 2 received a 2023 federal right-of-way for an 80-acre, 19 MW solar farm and 35 MW battery storage in Boulder City, NV; the replacement data center would consume up to 167 MW — enough to power 75,000 homes — in a city of just 15,000 people.
- Boulder City had no conversations or opportunity for input on the federal approval, per spokesperson Lisa LaPlante; the city's Planning Commission voted 6-1 against the project on adjacent city-owned land, and the developer withdrew that application after securing federal approval.
- The Boulder City Council voted unanimously on July 14 to appeal the BLM decision to the Interior Board of Land Appeals and is seeking a pause on construction while the case is heard.
- Arevon, a minority stakeholder (under 25%) in Townsite Solar 2, hired lobbyists from the Bernhardt Group — led by former Trump Interior Secretary David Bernhardt — around the time the switch was pursued; Arevon says it did not hire lobbyists specifically for this project.
- Sierra Club Toiyabe Chapter director Olivia Tanager called it a "bait and switch" and warned the precedent could let other clean-energy permits nationwide be converted to data centers without fresh environmental scrutiny.
Why it matters: The BLM classified a 19 MW clean-energy generator and a 167 MW power consumer as "substantially the same" on the same 80 acres in Boulder City (pop. 15,000), bypassing any new environmental review. Conservation groups warn this creates a national precedent for converting solar permits to data centers — and Boulder City is already appealing to the Interior Board of Land Appeals.
