PS 39-88 - CANCELLED - Experts’ perceived risks to ecosystems and species from renewable energy expansion across the United States

Wednesday, August 9, 2023

5:00 PM – 6:30 PM PDT

Location: ESA Exhibit Hall

Presenting Author(s)

DC

Daphne Condon, n/a

Ph.D. student
Global Ecology and Sustainability Lab, Land, Air & Water Resources Department, Wild Energy Center, Institute of the Environment - Energy and Efficiency Institute, University of California, Davis, CA, USA, United States

Coauthor(s)

TM

Toni Lyn Morelli, PhD

USGS Research Ecologist
USGA NECASC, United States
AS

Adam B. Smith, Global Change Ecology Center for Conservation and Sustainable Development

Assistant Scientist
Missouri Botanical Garden
St. Louis, MO, United States
TS

Tyler Scott

Center for Environmental Policy and Behavior, University of California, Davis, United States
UA

Uzma Ashraf, Wild Energy Center, Institute of the Environment - Energy and Efficiency Institute

Postdoc
Global Ecology and Sustainability Lab, Land, Air & Water Resources Department, Wild Energy Center, Institute of the Environment - Energy and Efficiency Institute, University of California, Davis, CA, USA
Davis, California, United States
AM

Alex Mojica

Global Ecology and Sustainability Lab, Land, Air & Water Resources Department, Wild Energy Center, Institute of the Environment - Energy and Efficiency Institute, University of California, Davis, CA, USA, United States
HC

Hrithika Chittanuru

Global Ecology and Sustainability Lab, Land, Air & Water Resources Department, Wild Energy Center, Institute of the Environment - Energy and Efficiency Institute, University of California, Davis, CA, USA, United States
RL

Rachel Luu

Global Ecology and Sustainability Lab, Land, Air & Water Resources Department, Wild Energy Center, Institute of the Environment - Energy and Efficiency Institute, University of California, Davis, CA, USA, United States
RB

Rae Bear

Global Ecology and Sustainability Lab, Land, Air & Water Resources Department, Wild Energy Center, Institute of the Environment - Energy and Efficiency Institute, University of California, Davis, CA, USA, United States
RH

Rebecca R. Hernandez

Global Ecology and Sustainability Lab, Land, Air & Water Resources Department, Wild Energy Center, Institute of the Environment - Energy and Efficiency Institute,University of California, Davis, CA, USA, United States

Abstract: Projections estimate that the United States must increase its renewable energy (RE) generation by nearly 70% to achieve its goal of net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. Despite their carbon reduction savings during energy generation, large-scale (i.e., ≥1 megawatt) renewable energy technologies, namely wind and photovoltaic (PV) solar energy power plants, require relatively vast amounts of land and may subsequently impact ecosystems and species. Compared to other competing land uses in the United States, the extent of these impacts must be better understood, especially in regions outside high RE development zones like the Southwest and Midwest. Understanding the nexus of RE and biological conservation is critical to ensure the United States meets its carbon reduction goals without posing risks to ecosystems and species. This study aims to assess instances of present and future impacts on ecosystems and species owing to RE siting across the entire United States through expert opinion. We established a unique framework to document the structure of expert knowledge, known as a knowledge system. We first identified all entity types (n=15) that comprise experts across the RE and conservation knowledge system in the United States. We categorized these 15 entities into the following six groups: federal and state agencies; universities and research institutes; utilities and utility-related entities; tribal groups; firms in environmental and RE development affairs; and non-profit organizations. We used web-scraping snowball techniques to compile a list of over 3,000 entity-based email contacts representing these six knowledge system groups across all 50 states. Experts from this list participated in a voluntary Qualtrics e-survey, which measured their perception of local- to national-scale impacts of RE siting and expansion on native ecosystems and species. Respondents compared the net impacts from wind and PV energy siting to the physical footprint of other land-use and land-cover change drivers, including those associated with the fossil fuel and agriculture industries. These results reveal insights across a national knowledge system on the interactions among RE siting impacts and plants, animals, and ecosystems across present and future (i.e., 2023 - 2050) scenarios. In doing so, the study documents these complex interactions from local- to national scales, including those in understudied regions of the United States. We identify specific species at risk from projected wind and PV expansion using post-survey semi-structured interviews with interested participants. Survey and interview results allow us to propose risk hotspot zones to inform targeted conservation policy.