Solar Energy-driven Land-cover Change Could Alter Landscapes Critical to Animal Movement in the Continental United States.

ABSTRACT: The United States may produce as much as 45% of its electricity using solar energy technology by 2050, which could require more than 40,000 km² of land to be converted to large-scale solar energy production facilities. Little is known about how such development may impact animal movement. Here, we use five spatially explicit projections of solar energy development through 2050 to assess the extent to which ground-mounted photovoltaic solar energy expansion in the continental United States may impact land-cover and alter areas important for animal movement. Our results suggest that there could be a substantial overlap between solar energy development and land important for animal movement: across projections, 7-17% of total development is expected to occur on land with high value

SUBMITTER: Levin MO 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10591311 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature