Comparison of Environmental Impact Assessment Methods in the Assembly and Operation of Photovoltaic Power Plants: A Systematic Review in the Castilla—La Mancha Region
Solar energy is in high demand due to its environmental benefits and economic potential; however, concerns remain about the total impact it holds. In 2020, for Spain, Castilla-La Mancha was the second autonomous community with the highest photovoltaic energy production. Thus, a systematic review on...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
MDPI AG
2022-03-01
|
| Series: | Energies |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/15/5/1926 |
| _version_ | 1797475110891814912 |
|---|---|
| author | Marichell Zarzavilla Andrea Quintero Manuela Andrés Abellán Francisco López Serrano Miguel Chen Austin Nathalia Tejedor-Flores |
| author_facet | Marichell Zarzavilla Andrea Quintero Manuela Andrés Abellán Francisco López Serrano Miguel Chen Austin Nathalia Tejedor-Flores |
| author_sort | Marichell Zarzavilla |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Solar energy is in high demand due to its environmental benefits and economic potential; however, concerns remain about the total impact it holds. In 2020, for Spain, Castilla-La Mancha was the second autonomous community with the highest photovoltaic energy production. Thus, a systematic review on 15 large-scale PV solar energy projects was carried out to assess the industry impacts, through environmental impact assessment (EIA), within the Autonomous Community of Castilla—La Mancha. An estimation of these impacts from a pre-operational approach is presented, based on primary energy needs and emissions discarded during its life cycle due to the manufacture, operation, and recycling of the photovoltaic modules. Based on both the life cycle assessment (LCA) and EIA, the approaches were compared with the results obtained. The obtained results suggest that determining the actual impacts of power plants in this region could provide justified information for the public administration and technicians in the measures for the installation and operation of PV plants and the future benefits of renewable solar technologies. Furthermore, the results indicate the possibility to recognize the relationship between the size of the plant and a high generation capacity, with a shorter time to pay for emissions from the manufacture and recycling of panels, suggesting that it is around 1.66–2.08 years for the Castilla-La Mancha region. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T20:40:29Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-103966b1b1df46f4a2ce7d287db19424 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1996-1073 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T20:40:29Z |
| publishDate | 2022-03-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Energies |
| spelling | doaj.art-103966b1b1df46f4a2ce7d287db194242023-11-23T22:59:31ZengMDPI AGEnergies1996-10732022-03-01155192610.3390/en15051926Comparison of Environmental Impact Assessment Methods in the Assembly and Operation of Photovoltaic Power Plants: A Systematic Review in the Castilla—La Mancha RegionMarichell Zarzavilla0Andrea Quintero1Manuela Andrés Abellán2Francisco López Serrano3Miguel Chen Austin4Nathalia Tejedor-Flores5Grupo de Investigación en Energética y Confort en Edificaciones Bioclimáticas (ECEB), Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Universidad Tecnológica de Panama, Panama City 0801, PanamaGrupo de Investigación en Energética y Confort en Edificaciones Bioclimáticas (ECEB), Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Universidad Tecnológica de Panama, Panama City 0801, PanamaEscuela Técnica Superior de Ingenieros Agrónomos de Albacete, Universidad Castilla-La Mancha, 02071 Albacete, SpainEscuela Técnica Superior de Ingenieros Agrónomos de Albacete, Universidad Castilla-La Mancha, 02071 Albacete, SpainGrupo de Investigación en Energética y Confort en Edificaciones Bioclimáticas (ECEB), Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Universidad Tecnológica de Panama, Panama City 0801, PanamaGrupo de Investigación en Energética y Confort en Edificaciones Bioclimáticas (ECEB), Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Universidad Tecnológica de Panama, Panama City 0801, PanamaSolar energy is in high demand due to its environmental benefits and economic potential; however, concerns remain about the total impact it holds. In 2020, for Spain, Castilla-La Mancha was the second autonomous community with the highest photovoltaic energy production. Thus, a systematic review on 15 large-scale PV solar energy projects was carried out to assess the industry impacts, through environmental impact assessment (EIA), within the Autonomous Community of Castilla—La Mancha. An estimation of these impacts from a pre-operational approach is presented, based on primary energy needs and emissions discarded during its life cycle due to the manufacture, operation, and recycling of the photovoltaic modules. Based on both the life cycle assessment (LCA) and EIA, the approaches were compared with the results obtained. The obtained results suggest that determining the actual impacts of power plants in this region could provide justified information for the public administration and technicians in the measures for the installation and operation of PV plants and the future benefits of renewable solar technologies. Furthermore, the results indicate the possibility to recognize the relationship between the size of the plant and a high generation capacity, with a shorter time to pay for emissions from the manufacture and recycling of panels, suggesting that it is around 1.66–2.08 years for the Castilla-La Mancha region.https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/15/5/1926clean energyenvironmental impact assessmentgreenhouse gas emissionslife cycle analysisphotovoltaic power plant |
| spellingShingle | Marichell Zarzavilla Andrea Quintero Manuela Andrés Abellán Francisco López Serrano Miguel Chen Austin Nathalia Tejedor-Flores Comparison of Environmental Impact Assessment Methods in the Assembly and Operation of Photovoltaic Power Plants: A Systematic Review in the Castilla—La Mancha Region Energies clean energy environmental impact assessment greenhouse gas emissions life cycle analysis photovoltaic power plant |
| title | Comparison of Environmental Impact Assessment Methods in the Assembly and Operation of Photovoltaic Power Plants: A Systematic Review in the Castilla—La Mancha Region |
| title_full | Comparison of Environmental Impact Assessment Methods in the Assembly and Operation of Photovoltaic Power Plants: A Systematic Review in the Castilla—La Mancha Region |
| title_fullStr | Comparison of Environmental Impact Assessment Methods in the Assembly and Operation of Photovoltaic Power Plants: A Systematic Review in the Castilla—La Mancha Region |
| title_full_unstemmed | Comparison of Environmental Impact Assessment Methods in the Assembly and Operation of Photovoltaic Power Plants: A Systematic Review in the Castilla—La Mancha Region |
| title_short | Comparison of Environmental Impact Assessment Methods in the Assembly and Operation of Photovoltaic Power Plants: A Systematic Review in the Castilla—La Mancha Region |
| title_sort | comparison of environmental impact assessment methods in the assembly and operation of photovoltaic power plants a systematic review in the castilla la mancha region |
| topic | clean energy environmental impact assessment greenhouse gas emissions life cycle analysis photovoltaic power plant |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/15/5/1926 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT marichellzarzavilla comparisonofenvironmentalimpactassessmentmethodsintheassemblyandoperationofphotovoltaicpowerplantsasystematicreviewinthecastillalamancharegion AT andreaquintero comparisonofenvironmentalimpactassessmentmethodsintheassemblyandoperationofphotovoltaicpowerplantsasystematicreviewinthecastillalamancharegion AT manuelaandresabellan comparisonofenvironmentalimpactassessmentmethodsintheassemblyandoperationofphotovoltaicpowerplantsasystematicreviewinthecastillalamancharegion AT franciscolopezserrano comparisonofenvironmentalimpactassessmentmethodsintheassemblyandoperationofphotovoltaicpowerplantsasystematicreviewinthecastillalamancharegion AT miguelchenaustin comparisonofenvironmentalimpactassessmentmethodsintheassemblyandoperationofphotovoltaicpowerplantsasystematicreviewinthecastillalamancharegion AT nathaliatejedorflores comparisonofenvironmentalimpactassessmentmethodsintheassemblyandoperationofphotovoltaicpowerplantsasystematicreviewinthecastillalamancharegion |