IMPORTANT STUDY ON SOLAR RELATED SITING
From Harvard Forest and Mass Audubon, Oct. 2, 2023:
A new report released today by scientists in the Thompson Lab at Harvard Forest and Mass Audubon offers the first-ever comprehensive economic and geospatial analysis of whether Massachusetts can meet its solar goals while protecting its most valuable natural and working lands.
The report proposes a shift from large-scale, ground-mount solar to solar projects on rooftops, parking lots, and already-developed lands. It offers a way forward for Massachusetts to meet its goal of reaching net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 while simultaneously protecting forests and farmlands…
- Read the full report by Michelle Manion, Jonathan Thompson, Katie Pickrell, Lucy Lee, Heidi Ricci, Jeff Collins, Josh Plisinski, Ryan Jones, Gabe Kwok, Drew Powell, and Will Rhatigan.
- See a news article by WBUR: Mass. can expand solar without chopping so much forest, report says
- Read the press release
GROWING SOLAR, PROTECTING NATURE:
How Massachusetts Can Build the Solar We Need While Protecting the Nature We Have
From Mass Audubon here
Massachusetts needs more solar energy. To reach net-zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 2050, we’ll need five to seven times as much solar energy in 2050 as we have now. Building that solar, and quickly, is urgent in the face of the climate crisis.
Unfortunately, Massachusetts’ current pattern of solar development is causing unnecessary harm to nature. Since 2010, over 5,000 acres of natural and working lands have been destroyed for solar development in Massachusetts, resulting in the emission of over half a million metric tons of CO₂— more than the annual emissions of 100,000 passenger cars.
Every acre of forest destroyed is a huge loss for birds and other wildlife, clean air and water, natural beauty, and recreation. But most importantly, cutting forests and developing farmlands to build solar energy doesn’t make sense for the climate: natural ecosystems and farm soils absorb 10% of Massachusetts’ greenhouse gas emissions every year. Both nature conservation and solar energy must be treated as essential strategies in our response to the climate crisis…
Key Results
- Current solar development trends would cause the loss of 6.3 million metric tons of CO₂ by 2050— roughly equivalent to the annual CO₂ emissions of the City of Boston
- By protecting the most valuable natural and working lands from development, Massachusetts could produce enough solar energy to meet our GHG emission goals, while preserving 76% more forest carbon than our current trajectory would predict, and protecting nearly 100% of our remaining essential wildlife habitat and prime farmland.
- Massachusetts’ rooftops and parking lots alone could support up to 30 Gigawatts of solar, and sites with low-impacts to nature and farms could support another 25 Gigawatts.
- Cities, towns, and non-profits own or manage many of the best sites for low-impact solar, creating a huge opportunity for solar development by mission-driven organizations.
… Right Size in the Right Place
We support our neighboring residents in Shutesbury who oppose industrial solar, learn more about it here.