Strategic Analysis of Land Use for Solar Energy Development in the State of New York
Loading...
No Access Until
Permanent Link(s)
Collections
Other Titles
Authors
Abstract
This study investigates the spatial characteristics of existing utility-scale solar energy (USSE) development in the New York State (NYS) and assesses the land-suitability for the future development of USSE needed to achieve the State’s renewable energy goals using GIS-MCDA techniques. Slope, proximity to electric substations, protected lands, and soil quality were used as criteria to develop land suitability scenarios. 40% of present USSE capacity has been developed on agricultural lands and 84% of identified land suitable for development (~140 GW potential) is agricultural. The USSE potential on non-agricultural land is 22.5 GW -- just sufficient to accommodate the development of 21.6 GW USSE, which is the estimated USSE capacity required for NYS’s 2030 goal. Thus, agricultural lands will continue to be the prime target for future USSE development. Exploring the state-specific synergies for solar-agriculture co-location, preventing the spatially-concentrated development of USSE, and incentivizing the use of unproductive agricultural lands will help mitigate negative impacts of USSE development on agricultural lands.
Journal / Series
Volume & Issue
Description
60 pages
Sponsorship
Date Issued
2020-05
Publisher
Keywords
GIS-MCDA; land-use; New York; renewable energy; siting; solar
Location
Effective Date
Expiration Date
Sector
Employer
Union
Union Local
NAICS
Number of Workers
Committee Chair
Tester, Jefferson W
Committee Co-Chair
Committee Member
Zhang, K. Max
Reed, Patrick M
Reed, Patrick M
Degree Discipline
Chemical Engineering
Degree Name
M.S., Chemical Engineering
Degree Level
Master of Science
Related Version
Related DOI
Related To
Related Part
Based on Related Item
Has Other Format(s)
Part of Related Item
Related To
Related Publication(s)
Link(s) to Related Publication(s)
References
Link(s) to Reference(s)
Previously Published As
Government Document
ISBN
ISMN
ISSN
Other Identifiers
Rights
Attribution 4.0 International
Rights URI
Types
dissertation or thesis