By Blake Jackson
Researchers from Cornell University and partnering organizations have developed a new mapping model designed to help communities balance renewable energy expansion with farmland preservation and biodiversity protection.
The study examined how utility-scale solar projects can be placed more responsibly across New York while minimizing conflicts over land use.
Published April 22 in the journal Geography and Sustainability, the research brought together scientists from Cornell, The Nature Conservancy, the U.S. Geological Survey, and Central Michigan University.
The team analyzed New York landscapes according to three major priorities: low-cost solar development, protection of productive farmland, and conservation of important wildlife habitats.
Their maps highlighted areas where solar projects could face minimal conflict as well as regions where competing land-use priorities may create challenges.
“There’s land-use conflict associated with solar energy development because there are different people interested in biodiversity, agriculture and energy, but in reality those things are interacting in a nexus,” said Steve Grodsky, the paper’s senior author and assistant professor at Cornell.
“We are addressing those things all at once so we can give people a better idea of the interactions and the potential land-use change. This modeling gives us an opportunity to forecast potential interaction points and potential conflict zones, and allows communities and agencies to make more-informed choices in siting decisions.”
Researchers found that prioritizing farmland preservation avoided nearly 80% of potential solar development on agricultural land, though it could increase forest clearing elsewhere.
Protecting biodiversity-sensitive areas raised projected annual costs by only 0.17%, while shifting more development toward pasture and cropland.
The study also evaluated an aggressive renewable energy scenario from New York State Energy Research and Development Authority, estimating the state could require roughly 46,000 megawatts of solar power by 2050, covering about 107,700 acres.
“Traditionally, solar siting has been evaluated through a least-cost objective where the primary goal is to site the energy quickly, cost effectively and ensure reliability. But there is a lot of community pushback around wanting to protect prime farmland and concern around clear-cutting forests,” said Adam Gallaher of Central Michigan University.
“What we’ve found is that it is possible, and minimally more expensive, to take into account multiple criteria that can inform just and ecologically responsible energy transitions.”
Photo Credit: istock-shansekala
Categories: New York, Education, Energy