Environmental Impacts of Renewables Flashcards

How does the albedo effect relate to utility-scale solar farm deployment?

Answer: Replacing reflective desert sand or crops with dark solar panels can locally raise temperatures

Dark solar panels absorb more sunlight than the light-colored soils or vegetation they replace, potentially creating a local warming microclimate known as a 'heat island' effect.

What is the main environmental advantage of run-of-river hydropower compared to reservoir-based hydropower?

Answer: Significantly less disruption to river flow and ecosystems

Run-of-river systems divert only a portion of river flow without creating large reservoirs, preserving more natural flow regimes, sediment transport, and aquatic habitat.

Which environmental metric best captures the total climate benefit of replacing a coal plant with a wind farm over 25 years?

Answer: Cumulative CO2-equivalent emissions avoided

Cumulative avoided CO2-equivalent emissions aggregate all greenhouse gases over the project lifetime, capturing the actual climate benefit compared to the displaced fossil generation.

What is 'shadow flicker' and which environmental domain does it affect?

Answer: Alternating shadows cast by rotating turbine blades affecting nearby human health and comfort

Shadow flicker occurs when rotating blades periodically block sunlight, creating a strobe-like effect that can cause discomfort, headaches, or seizure risk in photosensitive individuals living near turbines.

Which type of solar installation has the lowest overall land use impact per unit of energy produced?

Answer: Building-integrated photovoltaics (BIPV) on existing structures

BIPV integrates panels into existing building envelopes, consuming no additional land since the building footprint is already developed and the energy is generated where it is used.

What environmental concern has led some states to require decommissioning bonds for wind and solar projects?

Answer: Ensuring funds exist for proper removal and site restoration when projects end

Decommissioning bonds ensure that developers cannot abandon sites at end-of-life, leaving landowners and communities responsible for the cost of removing turbines, panels, and foundations.

Biomass energy is sometimes classified as 'carbon neutral' — what is the primary challenge to this classification?

Answer: The carbon released at combustion may not be reabsorbed for decades, creating a 'carbon debt'

Burning biomass releases CO2 immediately, but the replacement trees take 20–100 years to regrow and reabsorb that carbon, meaning short-term atmospheric CO2 increases even if the system is ultimately carbon neutral.