Pursuant to California Code of Regulations, title 20, section 1877, the California Energy Commission (CEC) staff has prepared a Staff Assessment (SA), which includes a Draft Environmental Impact Report (EIR), to evaluate the potential environmental effects of the construction and operation of the Darden Clean Energy Project (DCEP or project) (23-OPT-02), in compliance with the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), the CEQA Guidelines, the Warren-Alquist State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Act, and California Code of Regulations, title 20, chapter 5, article 4.1 (Opt-In Certification Program). The SA also evaluates whether the construction and operation of the project would conform with all applicable local, state, and federal laws, ordinances, regulations, and standards (LORS). The applicant is seeking a certification from the CEC to construct and operate the project. The DCEP proposes the construction and operation of a solar photovoltaic (PV) facility, battery energy storage system (BESS), substation, and generation-intertie (gentie) line on approximately 9,500 acres in unincorporated Fresno County, California, near the community of Cantua Creek. More complete project details are set forth in Section 3, Project Description.
