Desert photovoltaic panel installation artifact

Can photovoltaic power plants be developed in the Gobi Desert?

Author to whom correspondence should be addressed. The global expansion of photovoltaic (PV) power plants, especially in ecologically fragile regions like the Gobi Desert, highlights the suitability of such areas for large-scale PV development.

Does photovoltaic development improve environmental conditions in desert areas?

Photovoltaic development in desert areas has significantly improved local ecological and environmental conditions. At the WPS, the Status and Impact scores were 0.182 and 0.11, respectively, indicating a significant impact on the ecological environment of the study area.

Does PV power station deployment affect desert vegetation?

Previous remote sensing studies of a few PV power stations have demonstrated that the PV power station deployment does not significantly alter desert vegetation (Edalat and Stephen, 2017; Potter, 2016).

Are deserts a good place to build a PV power station?

Deserts are becoming the ideal places for constructing photovoltaic (PV) power stations, due to sufficient light conditions and broadly available land resources (Tanner et al., 2020). Apart from croplands, deserts are the most deployed areas for PV power stations worldwide by 2018 (Kruitwagen et al., 2021).

Does PV power station deployment promote desert greening in China?

In general, the desert greening (with a significant increase in vegetation) in China from PV power station deployment is largely promoted by the policy-driven Photovoltaic Desert Control Projects. However, the human activities effects on vegetation are often superimposed on the long-term climate-driven variations.

Do solar panels affect the environment in desert areas?

Large-scale PV construction in desert areas can alter the local microclimate and soil conditions, thereby affecting the growth of vegetation. However, few studies have focused on the effects of PV panels on the environment of desert areas.