Eldorado Valley#Solar power
{{Short description|Basin in Clark County, Nevada, United States}}
{{Infobox valley
| name = Eldorado Valley
| other_name =
| photo = Eldorado Valley 1.jpg
| photo_caption = View south of Eldorado Valley's center & north;
(Highland Range, (center photo) on valley's southwest perimeter; playa visible, ~5-mi)
| map = USA Nevada
| map_image =
| map_caption = Eldorado Valley (north at Eldorado Dry Lake)
in Nevada
| location = Nevada, United States
(southeast)-Mojave Desert
(central-southeast)-Great Basin
| relief = yes
| label =
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| coordinates = {{coord|35|52.211|N|114|55.975|W|display=inline,title}}
| coordinates_ref =
| elevation =
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| length = {{convert|35|mi|abbr=on}}
| width = {{convert|18|mi|abbr=on}}
| area =
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| boundaries = McCullough Range-W
River Mountains-NNE
Eldorado Mountains-E
Piute Valley-S
Highland Range-SSW
| topo =
| towns = Boulder City, NV-NE
Searchlight, NV-(south)
Henderson, NV-NW
| traversed =
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Eldorado Valley, or El Dorado Valley, is a Great Basin valley in the Mojave Desert southeast of Las Vegas and southwest of Boulder City, Nevada. The valley is endorheic, containing the Eldorado Dry Lake. The Great Basin Divide, transects ridgelines and saddles, on the north, northeast, east, and south around the valley, as the valley sits on the east of the McCullough Range, a Great Basin massif, on the Great Basin Divide at its north terminus and its south terminus. Much of the valley is protected as part of Avi Kwa Ame National Monument.
Geography
The north end of the valley contains a large salt pan, or dry lake, Dry Lake or Eldorado Playa, while the southern two thirds drains northwards.{{GNIS|840182|Dry Lake}} U.S. Route 95 traverses eastern portions of the valley, and climbs steeply to meet U.S. Route 93, connecting Boulder City to Henderson.
The endorheic basin lies north of the Piute Wash Watershed,{{cite web|title=Piute Wash watershed--15030102|url=http://cfpub.epa.gov/surf/huc.cfm?huc_code=15030102|work=U.S. Environmental Protection Agency|accessdate=13 August 2011}} of the north-south Piute Valley. The Piute Wash drains south, then southeast to the Colorado River.
Highland Range Crucial Bighorn Habitat
The southern valley includes a habitat nature reserve for the Desert Bighorn Sheep, named the 'Highland Range Crucial Bighorn Habitat'.{{cite web|title=Highland Range Crucial Bighorn Habitat|url=http://www.recreation.gov/recAreaDetails.do?contractCode=NRSO&recAreaId=2115&agencyCode=126|work=recreation.gov|accessdate=13 August 2011}} There are no public access routes into the habitat area, to protect the Bighorn.
File:McCullough Mountain from Eldorado Valley 1.jpg|Valley's center-south, from east side.
(North end of Highland Range (from east-southeast), McCullough Range massif beyond.)
Solar power
Image:Eldorado Valley Solar Farms.jpg
The northern valley contains Boulder City's "Eldorado Energy Zone" which is home to the 480 MW El Dorado natural gas power plant completed in the year 2000.{{cite web|title=El Dorado Energy begins commercial operations in Nevada |url=http://gasandoil.com/news/n_america/be996b70d9c1af4f7028b0efae336744 |work=gasandoil.com |date=4 May 2000 |accessdate=11 February 2019}}
Since 2007, it is also home to the concentrated solar power plant, Nevada Solar One, as well as a growing number of photovoltaic power stations, including:{{cite web|title=Boulder City OKs deal for solar power plant |url=http://lasvegassun.com/news/2011/feb/22/boulder-city-oks-deal-solar-power-plant/ |work=lasvegassun.com |date=22 February 2011 |accessdate=11 February 2019}}{{cite web|title=NV Energy's Boulder Solar 2 goes fully online |url=https://www.lasvegasnow.com/news/nv-energys-boulder-solar-2-goes-fully-online/655765666 |work=lasvegasnow.com |date=13 February 2017 |accessdate=11 February 2019}}{{cite web|title=Solar projects|url=http://www.nvenergy.com/renewablesenvironment/renewables/solar.cfm|work=NVEnergy|accessdate=13 August 2011}}
{{Clear}}
References
{{commons category|Eldorado Valley}}
{{reflist}}
External links
- [http://cfpub.epa.gov/surf/huc.cfm?huc_code=15010015 Las Vegas Wash Watershed]; [http://cfpub.epa.gov/surf/huc.cfm?huc_code=15030101 Havasu-Mohave Lakes Watershed]
- Eldorado Playa, Geomicrobiological Changes (coord)
- [http://evflyers.com/news.php Eldorado Dry Lake, Eldorado Valley Flyers.com-(elevation 1750ft)]
- [http://www.riderplanet-usa.com/atv/trails/info/nevada_05456/ride_e0f6.htm (Eldorado Dry Lake), RiderPlanet-USA, riderplanet-usa.com (elevation) & Photo gallery]
Category:Endorheic basins of the United States
Category:Valleys of the Mojave Desert
Category:Valleys of Clark County, Nevada
Category:Protected areas of the Mojave Desert
{{ClarkCountyNV-geo-stub}}