Audit finds weaknesses in the review of wind and solar projects on US Public Lands

A report published by an independent government monitor on Thursday found that U.S. officials failed to follow federal regulations consistently when reviewing applications for solar and wind projects on public land.

A report by the Office of Inspector General of the Interior Department found that the Bureau of Land Management failed to assess the technical and financial capability of most applicants to develop renewable energy project, kept incomplete files and did not screen applications on a timely basis. Donald Trump is trying to stop the development of solar and wind projects on federal land. He has done this by reviewing wind leasing and permitting practices, and by requiring more scrutiny of renewable project on federal land. The IG's Office said that although its report was initiated before these actions, its work could be helpful to Interior's efforts in assessing agency practices and developing new processes.

The BLM is part of Interior Department and manages public lands in Western states, mainly 245 million acres.

The Interior watchdog blamed weaknesses on a lack of training and internal controls. It said that these weaknesses put the agency in danger of awarding licenses to non-qualified entities, and prevented them from collecting rents or fees.

The report examined 258 applications for right-of way on federal land between 2017 and 2023. A right-of-way is a permit that allows you to use public land for a particular purpose. Inspector generals are independent positions that perform audits and investigate allegations of fraud, waste and abuse of authority by the government. Trump fired Interior Department Inspector General of five years immediately after taking office in the early part of this year. Caryl Brzymialkiewicz is the new acting inspector general. She was previously deputy inspector General.

Ten recommendations were made to improve BLM internal controls. Nine of the recommendations were accepted by BLM. Nichola Groom reports.

(source: Reuters)