Quantitative analyses of multidimensional ecological impacts of Talatan photovoltaic power plant on desert ecosystems in Northwestern China

作者：Tong Yishuang, Qian Ding, Chongbin Xu, Qian Chen, Guojin He, Zhiyun Ouyang, Wu Yang · 发表于：Environmental Research Letters · 年份：2025 · DOI：10.1088/1748-9326/adf7c1 · 被引用次数：7 · 研究领域：Photovoltaic Systems and Sustainability、Energy and Environment Impacts、Social Acceptance of Renewable Energy

Abstract Globally, solar energy has supplanted fossil fuels as the predominant source of clean energy. Scholars have been calling for techno-ecological synergies that minimizing unintended environmental consequences; however, empirical evidence is largely missing in the existing literature. Taking the world’s largest photovoltaic (PV) power plant as a demonstration, combining remote sensing images with field data, we actively used the spatiotemporal dynamic analysis, gross ecosystem products accounting method and statistical analysis methods to show techno-ecological synergies for electricity generation and ecological recovery. Specifically, our analyses reveal that (1) PV panels reduced surface albedo. The albedo of three broad spectral bands decreased by >15% in PV area; (2) comparing to areas between and outside the PV areas, areas under the PV panels enhanced vegetation cover by 61.86% (absolute coverage of 38.22%) and 131.80% (absolute coverage of 56.86%), unit area above-ground biomass by 133.71% (119 g) and 235.48% (146 g), and plant height by 31.02% (17.36 cm) and 45.58% (22.96 cm), respectively. Nevertheless, PV panels exerted a negative impact on soil organic matter but did not significantly affect other soil and vegetation indicators (i.e. soil water content, vegetation nitrogen content, and vegetation biodiversity, etc); and (3) PV panels improved ecosystem services. Specifically, from 2010 to 2020, among the four ecosystem regulating services, carbon sequestra...