National Renewable Energy Laboratory

By the third quarter of 2012, the United States had deployed more than 2.1 gigawatts (GWac) of utility-scale solar generation capacity, with 4.6 GWac under construction as of August 2012 (SEIA 2012). Continued growth is anticipated owing to state renewable portfolio standards and decreasing system costs (DOE 2012a). One concern regarding large-scale deployment of solar energy is its potentially significant land use. Efforts have been made to understand solar land use estimates from the literature (Horner and Clark 2013); however, we were unable to find a comprehensive evaluation of solar land use requirements from the research literature. This report provides data and analysis of the land use associated with U. S. utility-scale ground-mounted photovoltaic (PV) and concentrating solar power (CSP) facilities. After discussing solar land-use metrics and our data-collection and analysis methods, we present total and direct land-use results for various solar technologies and system configurations, on both a capacity and an electricity-generation basis. The total area corresponds to all land enclosed by the site boundary. The direct area comprises land directly occupied by solar arrays, access roads, substations, service buildings, and other infrastructure. We quantify and summarize the area impacted, recognizing that the quality and duration of the impact must be evaluated on a case-by-case basis. As of the third quarter of 2012, the solar projects we analyze represent 72% of installed and under-construction utility-scale PV and CSP capacity in the United States. Table ES-1 summarizes our land-use results.

Solar energy systems installed on public schools have a number of benefits that include utility bill savings, reductions in greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs) and other toxic air contaminants, job creation, demonstrating environmental leadership, and creating learning opportunities for students. In the 2011 economic environment, the ability to generate general-fund savings as a result of reducing utility bills has become a primary motivator for school districts trying to cut costs. To achieve meaningful savings, the size of the photovoltaic (PV) systems installed (both individually on any one school and collectively across a district) becomes much more important; larger systems are required to have a material impact on savings. Larger PV systems require a significant financial commitment and financing therefore becomes a critical element in the transaction. In simple terms, school districts can use two primary types of ownership models to obtain solar installations and cost savings across a school district. The PV installations can be financed and owned directly by the districts themselves. Alternatively, there are financing structures whereby another entity, such as a solar developer or its investors, actually own and operate the PV systems on behalf of the school district. This is commonly referred to as the "third-party ownership model." Both methods have advantages and disadvantages that should be weighed carefully.

A Manual for the Economic Evaluation of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Technologies provides guidance on economic evaluation approaches, metrics, and levels of detail required, while offering a consistent basis on which analysts can perform analyses using standard assumptions and bases. It not only provides information on the primary economic measures used in economic analyses and the fundamentals of finance but also provides guidance focused on the special considerations required in the economic evaluation of energy efficiency and renewable energy systems.

This guide is designed to help you search for information in the wind energy field, ranging from its history and technology basics to the latest in research and development. It is written to help several audiences, including engineers and scientists who may be unfamiliar with a particular aspect of wind energy, university researchers who are interested in this field, manufacturers who want to learn more about specific wind topics, librarians who provide information to their clients, and anyone else who is interested in knowing more about wind energy technologies.