Featured in Beyond solar – 08-2023

UP: The value of natural capital

While the potential ecosystem benefits of solar have been trailed for some time, there is yet to be a comprehensive global guide to local-environment-friendly solar installation. Academics in the UK are proposing one.

By

Mark Hutchins

25 Jul 2023

In temperate climates, establishing pollinator habitats on land also in use for solar could be one of the most effective environmental protection measures, with cascading benefits for species diversity. | Photo: Hollie Blaydes/University of Lancaster

Solar has a reputation as a land-hungry industry and the PV boom will only exacerbate this impression. Numerous projects, though, have demonstrated simple steps can be taken to ensure solar coexists with, and can benefit, ecosystems. Now, scientists in the UK are calling for a standardized protocol to assess solar-project environmental measures and see what …

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