Effects of solar energy development on ants in the Mojave Desert

Solar energy development impacts flower-visiting beetles and flies in the Mojave Desert

Financial constraints on the development of solar energy— and suggested government action to mitigate such constraints

The world reserves of oil, coal and natural gas can accommodate further growth in energy use over the next few decades, but aggravates the great challenges posed by climate change. The production and consumption of energy have been creating great impact in our society and nature, and the consumption of fossil fuels is clearly unsustainable with potentially catastrophic consequences. Thus, the importance of renewable forms of energy is growing robustly, which can be observed by the energy policies of some of the leading nations in the world. Among the renewable forms of energy, solar power generation is becoming mainstream and by hypothesis is likely to become the world's most important source for electricity generation in the future. This thesis aims to contribute on the research concerning the development and prospects of solar energy in the world, bringing some light to the controversy about the possibility of overcoming the energy paradigm based on the combustion of fossil in time to prevent a possible environmental disaster. This paper is divided into three parts. The first one highlight the need for a transition from a fossil fuel-based society to one based on renewable energy, enabling a more sustainable growth. The second part is a brief discussion regarding the construction of a new energy paradigm and the innovations in the in low-carbon energy technologies, highlighting specific characteristics of the solar technology. Finally, the third part makes an overview of the current scenario, especially the one regarding the solar industry in the most advanced countries in the development of solar energy (United States, Germany, Japan and China). In this chapter an analysis is made about the progress of the solar energy in each country, pointing out government subsidies, industry and market development and future prospects of solar energy.

Asymmetric effects of financial and technological development on green energies: Evidence from solar, wind and renewable electricity with an emphasis on crisis conditions

Solar energy facilities are rapidly expanding in their land-use footprint worldwide, with significant implications for biodiversity. Although the impacts of conventional solar development are often negative for biodiversity, it is possible for some species to take advantage of the novel anthropogenic structures and microhabitats provided by solar facilities. We describe the frequent nesting of non-native European paper wasps (Polistes dominula) at two solar facilities in the Central Valley of California (USA), conducting nest censuses to further investigate population density and nest siting behaviour. Active nests were found to occur at a density of 10-23 per hectare of solar facility, and paper wasps had a preference for nesting in sheltered metal torque tubes compared with the more exposed undersides of photovoltaic panels. Our study shows that P. dominula might benefit from the construction of solar energy facilities, which could have a variety of impacts on native species and surrounding agriculture that warrant further study. The European paper wasp therefore provides an example to illustrate the potential for a varied and relatively unpredictable set of ecological outcomes to follow land-use change resulting from solar energy development.

Butterfly–host plant relationships can inform our understanding of ecological and trophic interactions that contribute to ecosystem function, resiliency, and services. The ecology of danaid–milkweed (Apocynaceae) host plant interactions has been studied in several biomes but is neglected in deserts. Our objective was to determine effects of plant traits, seasonality, and landscape-level host plant availability on selection of Mojave milkweed (Asclepias nyctaginifolia A. Gray) by ovipositing monarch butterflies (Danaus plexippusplexippus) and queen butterflies (Danaus gilippus thersippus) in the Californian Mojave Desert. We surveyed all known Mojave milkweed locations in the Ivanpah Valley, California (n = 419) during early, mid-, and late spring in 2017. For each survey, we counted monarch and queen butterfly eggs on each Mojave milkweed plant. We also measured canopy cover, height, volume, and reproductive stage of each Mojave milkweed plant. We counted a total of 276 queen butterfly eggs and zero monarch butterfly eggs on Mojave milkweed host plants. We determined that count of queen butterfly eggs significantly increased with increasing Mojave milkweed canopy cover. Additionally, count of queen butterfly eggs was: (1) greater on adult Mojave milkweed plants than on juvenile and seedling plants and greater on juvenile Mojave milkweed plants than on seedling plants; and (2) greater during early spring than mid-spring—we recorded no eggs during late spring. Based on aggregation indices, queen butterfly eggs occurred on Mojave milkweed plants in a nonrandom, clustered pattern throughout the Ivanpah Valley. We provide the first evidence of trophic interactions between queen butterflies and Mojave milkweed at multiple spatial scales in the Mojave Desert, suggesting that conservation and management practices for both species should be implemented concurrently. Given its role as an herbivore, pollinator and prey, the queen butterfly may serve as a model organism for understanding effects of anthropogenic disturbance (e.g., solar energy development) on “bottom-up” and trophic interactions among soils, plants and animals in desert ecosystems.

As large utility-scale solar photovoltaic (PV) and concentrating solar power (CSP) facilities are currently being built and planned for locations in the U.S. with the greatest solar resource potential, an understanding of water use for construction and operations is needed as siting tends to target locations with low natural rainfall and where most existing freshwater is already appropriated. Using methods outlined by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) to determine water used in designated solar energy zones (SEZs) for construction and operations & maintenance, an estimate of water used over the lifetime at the solar power plant is determined and applied to each watershed in six Southwestern states. Results indicate that that PV systems overall use little water, though construction usage is high compared to O&M water use over the lifetime of the facility. Also noted is a transition being made from wet cooled to dry cooled CSP facilities that will significantly reduce operational water use at these facilities. Using these water use factors, estimates of future water demand for current and planned solar development was made. In efforts to determine where water could be a limiting factor in solar energy development, water availability, cost, and projected future competing demands were mapped for the six Southwestern states. Ten watersheds, 9 in California, and one in New Mexico were identified as being of particular concern because of limited water availability.

Solar energy is expected to play a large role in decarbonization of the energy sector globally. In the United States, solar energy is forecasted to generate roughly 45% of the electricity by 2050. Although solar energy mitigates the negative effects of climate change by providing electricity without releasing greenhouse gases, little is known about the implications of solar energy development for ecosystem services. In this study, we developed a spatially explicit, techno-ecological solar suitability model consisting of six scenarios designed to evaluate the trade-offs between ground-mounted solar energy generation and multiple ecosystem services. By incorporating solar suitability modeling with ecosystem service evaluation, we develop a method that provides a comprehensive understanding of potential techno-ecological trade-offs. To test our methodology, we used Connecticut (USA) as a study site for analyzing the potential trade-offs of future solar energy facilities, but the methods can be widely applied. Our results suggest that well-sited solar energy development can decrease sediment and nutrient export while offsetting carbon emissions from power plants. This study provides a holistic assessment of incorporating ecosystem services in future solar energy development decision-making and presents an approach for minimizing trade-offs and maximizing sustainable outcomes.

The cumulative impacts of utility-scale solar energy facilities on aquatic ecosystems in the Southwestern United States are of concern, considering the many existing regional anthropogenic stressors. We review the potential impacts of solar energy development on aquatic habitat and biota. The greatest potential for impacts is related to the loss, fragmentation, or prolonged drying of ephemeral water bodies and drainage networks resulting from the loss of desert washes within the construction footprint of the facility. Groundwater-dependent aquatic habitat may also be affected by operational groundwater withdrawal in the case of water-intensive solar technologies. Solar panels have also been found to attract aquatic insects and waterbirds, potentially resulting in mortality. Avoiding construction activity near perennial and intermittent surface waters is the primary means of reducing impacts on aquatic habitats, followed by measures to minimize erosion, sedimentation, and contaminant inputs into waterways. Currently, significant data gaps make solar facility impact assessment and mitigation more difficult. Examples include the need for more regional and site-specific studies of surface-groundwater connectivity, more detailed maps of regional stream networks and riparian vegetation corridors, as well as surveys of the aquatic communities inhabiting ephemeral streams. In addition, because they often lack regulatory protection, there is also a need to develop valuation criteria for ephemeral waters based on their ecological and hydrologic function within the landscape. By addressing these research needs, we can achieve the goal of greater reliance on solar energy, while at the same time minimizing impacts on desert ecosystems.

Deserts are prioritized as recipient environments for solar energy development; however, the impacts of this development on desert plant communities are unknown. Desert plants represent long-standing ecological, economic and cultural resources for humans, especially indigenous peoples, but their role in supplying ecosystem services (ESs) remains understudied. We measured the effect of solar energy development decisions on desert plants at one of the world’s largest concentrating solar power plants (Ivanpah, California; capacity of 392 MW). We documented the negative effects of solar energy development on the desert scrub plant community. Perennial plant cover and structure are lower in bladed treatments than mowed treatments, which are, in turn, lower than the perennial plant cover and structure recorded in undeveloped controls. We determined that cacti species and Mojave yucca (Yucca schidigera) are particularly vulnerable to solar development (that is, blading, mowing), whereas Schismus spp.—invasive annual grasses—are facilitated by blading. The desert scrub community confers 188 instances of ESs, including cultural services to 18 Native American ethnic groups. Cultural, provisioning and regulating ESs of desert plants are lower in bladed and mowed treatments than in undeveloped controls. Our study demonstrates the potential for solar energy development in deserts to reduce biodiversity and socioecological resources, as well as the role that ESs play in informing energy transitions that are sustainable and just. Although deserts have been the focus of large-scale solar power development, this study finds that ecosystem services are degraded during such development, with impacts not only on plants and animals, but indigenous peoples as well.

Energy security depends upon the supply and demand of electricity. Power supply volatility is a challenge in India power sector. India is mainly dependent on coal, which is not a viable long-term option. Hence the future of energy supply in India is renewable energy, and solar energy is the most prominent and reliable source of renewable energy. The solar power plant is classified as a low, medium, and high temperature based solar power plant. The low- temperature solar power plant, the collectors, are unglazed plates. In contract, medium-temperature collectors are flat plates, and high-temperature collectors concentrate sunlight using mirrors and lenses, achieving temperature and pressure up to 3000 °C and 20 bar. This article discusses the existing total energy scenario, current solar energy developments, supportive solar energy policies, and solar energy prospects. The tactics, availability, perspectives, potential, and successes of solar energy in India are discussed in this study. The authors compared the barriers to solar energy acceptance and examined the topic of social dissimilarity from a broad theoretical perspective. The study offers policymakers at the federal and state levels, as well as investors, a perspective on issues that may lead to investments in this area. The study states that solar energy could meet above 50% of electricity sector demand in India in 2040. This study determined that solar energy incidence in India is around 5000 trillion KWh (kilowatt-hours) each year. The solar energy accessible in a single year surpasses the energy output from the petroleum derivative. The average energy from the solar power plant is 0.30 kWh per m2 equal to the 1400–1800 peak rated capacity. India has many solar power facilities, making it one of the top producers of renewable energy power.

Utility-scale solar energy (USSE) development is driving the projected growth in global renewable energy capacity but comes with environmental tradeoffs. New, alternative construction methods are promoted to minimize impacts to soils, vegetation, and hydrology; however, the disturbance created by these methods requires further investigation. We evaluated the population of a rare annual species, threecorner milkvetch ( Astragalus geyeri var. triquetrus ), at the Gemini Solar Project in the Mojave Desert, USA, two years after construction. Gemini was required to minimize disturbance in the threecorner milkvetch habitat, providing a unique opportunity to study the plant population and life history characteristics of a rare plant species under novel construction methods. Our objectives were to compare plant population characteristics of threecorner milkvetch inside and outside the Gemini footprint and in different photovoltaic (PV) panel microsites (interspace, panel dripline, under panel). We hypothesized that 1) threecorner milkvetch would have lower survival, reproduction, and growth, and a later phenology, inside compared to outside the facility, and 2) that these negative effects on plant demography and phenology would intensify with increasing proximity to photovoltaic panels in the solar array due to an increasing effect of disturbance and reduction of light and water availability. The results of this 1-year study during a favorable year of rainfall demonstrate the persistence of a rare Mojave annual plant species within an altered environment at a USSE facility. We found that threecorner milkvetch had an earlier phenology, grew larger, and had a higher fecundity at Gemini compared to plants off-site. Survivorship between the two populations, however, was not significantly different. Although growth and reproductive metrics were not correlated with distance to panel, minimal threecorner milkvetch emergence occurred directly under the PV panels and along their driplines, indicating a potential loss of suitable habitat if this pattern becomes more widespread in space or through time. Novel construction techniques for USSE could be considered moving forward to minimize impact on aboveground vegetation and maintain viable seed banks. The results of this study can assist land managers in making decisions about USSE development as the demand grows.

Current site planning of medium to large solar power systems accelerates the loss of the remaining semi-natural and agricultural habitats.

The research studies the forecasting abilities of Artificial Neural Network (ANN) daily inverter yields and cumulative energy output in solar power facilities through Weighted Improved particle swarm optimization (WIPSO) and particle swarm optimization (PSO). Scientific data was collected during 30 days across two solar power facilities using inverter power generation measurements alongside sensor-collected environmental data placed strategically throughout each facility. The study combines PSO and WIPSO under ANN architecture to increase the prediction accuracy for solar energy output, so operational decision-making and long-term solar system planning can improve. Results show that ANN optimization through PSO generated R-squared between 72% to 88% and WIPSO optimized ANN achieved R-squared rates between 68% to 88% both demonstrating effective prediction capabilities for AC power output across most inverters.

The solar chimney power facility has the potential to become a valuable technology for renewable energy production. Its financial viability depends on a thorough understanding of the processes affecting its performance, particularly because of the large startup costs associated with facility design and construction. This paper describes the potential impacts on plant capacity resulting from cloud formation within or downwind of the solar chimney. Several proposed modifications to the basic concept of the solar chimney power facility have the potential to cause significant additions of water vapor to the air passing through the collector. As the air continues up through and out of the chimney, this excess water can condense to form cloud. This possibility is explored using a cloud parcel model initialized to simulate the range of expected operating conditions for a proposed solar chimney facility in southwestern Australia. A range of temperatures and updraft velocities is simulated for each of four seasonal representations and three levels of water vapor enhancement. Both adiabatic environments and the effects of entrainment are considered. The results indicate that for very high levels of water vapor, enhancement cloud formation within the chimney is likely; at more moderate levels of water vapor enhancement, the likelihood of plume formation is difficult to fully assess as the results depend strongly on the choice of entrainment rate. Finally, the impacts of these outcomes on facility capacity are estimated.