Sunny days for Nevada tribes

Nearly 1 million photovoltaic panels were approved for construction on the Moapa River Indian Reservation in Southern Nevada. The solar plant will help supply power to Los Angeles, resulting in economic growth for the Moapa Band of Paiutes. According to a report in the Las Vegas Review-Journal, it’s the largest solar plant on tribal land in the country. Los Angeles and the tribe have a “$1.6 billion, 25-year pact,” the report said.

The power generated by the plant will provide energy for more than 100,000 homes in Los Angeles, and Moapa Band of Paiutes will oversee the plant and supply gravel and sand. Response to the solar plant has been positive as tribes throughout the state have been developing renewable energy resources onto reservations. The Moapa Band of Paiutes has been active in opposing the Reid Gardner coal plant, notably staging a protest at the Clean Energy Summit, held earlier this year in Las Vegas.