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3. E
NVIRONMENTAL AND
S
OCIAL
C
ONSIDERATIONS
Solar energy facilities sited on landfills are likely able to bypass many of the environmental and social impacts that are typical of energy installations sited on undeveloped
open space e.g., high acreage requirements, fragmentation of habitat, displacement of agriculture and recreation, etc. Nonetheless, landfill-based solar energy systems are not entirely
isolated from interactions with the surrounding environment and community, and impacts on wildlife, water, and the public may occur. The potential for such impacts should be taken into
consideration when siting and designing a landfill-based solar energy project. 3.1 Impervious Surfaces
Impervious surfaces are structures and ground coverings that inhibit rainwater infiltration and natural groundwater discharge e.g., roads, sidewalks, and parking lots. Impervious surfaces
contribute to detrimental environmental impacts such as increased stormwater runoff, erosion, and pollution of waterways. In the case of landfill solar development projects, impervious
surfaces may include gravel roads, ballast, inverters, and pads. Solar panels are also considered impervious, but because panels are raised above the surface of the ground, there can be design
strategies to mitigate the stormwater impacts posed by a system. As of the time of this writing, RIDEM was examining how to treat landfill solar projects in the context of compliance with the
RIDEM Landfill Closure Program and the eleven minimum standards outlined in Section 3 of the Stormwater Design and Installation Standards Manual RISDISM RIDEM, 2011, a set of
management practices and water quality performance standards developed to mitigate the effects of stormwater runoff. It is recommended that project developers schedule a preapplication
meeting with RIDEM to address the particulars of a specific project Beck, Wilusz, and Walusiak December 2012. Personal communication.
3.2 Wetlands The R.I. Freshwater Wetlands Act R.I. Gen. Laws 2-1-18 et seq. and its associated
Freshwater Wetlands Rules and Regulations were instituted to “to preserve the purity and integrity of the swamps, marshes, and other fresh water wetlands of this state R.I. Gen. Laws 2-
1- 19.” The Freshwater Wetlands Act requires landowners to obtain a permit from RIDEM in
order to “excavate; drain; fill; place trash, garbage, sewage, highway runoff, drainage ditch effluents, earth, rock, borrow, gravel, sand, clay, peat, or other materials or effluents upon; divert
water flows into or out of; dike; dam; divert; change; add to or take from or otherwise alter the character of any fresh water wetland R.I. Gen. Laws 2-1-
21.” Landfill solar projects located near wetlands may require freshwater wetlands permits to ensure that no adverse impacts to the
wetland occur.
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3.3 Impacts on Birds and Wildlife Solar energy projects can disturb wildlife through construction noise, runoff, glare, and
activities associated with maintenance work. Endangered and threatened species are of particular concern when considering these impacts. Project owners should determine whether a proposed
site contains habitat of value for endangered and threatened species. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service USFWS, which oversees implementation of the Endangered Species Act, currently lists
seven animal and one plant species in Rhode Island as endangered, and two animal and two plant species as threatened. RIDEM’s Natural Heritage Program also maintains a list of animal and
plant species identified as endangered, threatened, or of concern by the state. If endangered
species are present on or near landfills, solar energy development should proceed in accordance with the Endangered Species Act ESA; 16 U.S.C. § et seq. of 1973. The ESA makes it
unlawful for any person in the United States to “take” an endangered species. To “take” is defined as “to harass, harm, pursue, hunt, shoot, wound, kill, trap, capture, or collect or to
attempt to
engage in any such conduct 16 U.S.C. § 1532.” Some evidence suggests that solar panels can affect the ability of birds to carry out
migratory activity, but little is known about this relationship. Panel glare is probably the most important factor to consider, but mitigation of glare is difficult to achieve Sheppard 2012.
Personal communication. Use of night-time safety lights, especially steady red or white lights, may also be disorienting for birds Sheppard 2011. Migrating birds are most affected by lights
during stormy weather, so it may be prudent to reduce the extent of lighting associated with PV panels during periods of inclement weather activity. For added protection, project owners may
consider permanent use of cut-off shields, which direct light downward, and motion detectors on all facility lights.
3.4 Human Safety Because utility-scale PV facilities generate large amounts of electricity and contain
potentially hazardous wiring, they may present a human safety hazard if not managed with precaution. Additionally, all PV components, including the panels, which are made of glass,
must be protected from damage caused by human interference. Erecting fences around landfill solar projects can serve the dual purpose of keeping the public safe from electrical hazards and
protecting the panels from vandalism or theft. This consideration may limit the size of PV arrays on landfill sites because there must be buffer space between the fencing and the panels.
A separate human safety factor involves glare from the solar array. Glare from panels can potentially disrupt pilots along airport flight paths. Glare can usually be mitigated via minor tilt
adjustments Stafford et al. 2011.
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3.5 Cultural and Historic Resources While landfills are unlikely to be considered historic or cultural sites themselves,
development of solar energy projects on landfills can have indirect impacts on historic or cultural sites in the vicinity. Indirect effects on a historic or cultural site are those that infringe on the use
of that site by introducing a foreign structure into the viewshed andor creating noise impacts that interfere with appreciation of the site’s cultural or historic value. For instance, glare caused by
solar panels or noise caused by construction may diminish the ability of the public to appreciate
historic or cultural sites near a project. The historic and cultural environment around a landfill may include archaeological
remains, historic buildings, cemeteries, sites of sacred importance to Native American cultures, and traditional landscapes. Many cultural resources are unique and irreplaceable, but some may
require more protection than others. For instance, sites that receive more visitors are arguably more important to protect than less popular or well known sites Masser 2006.
Rhode Island has a dense concentration of sites of historic andor cultural value. According to the Rhode Island Historical Preservation and Heritage Commission,
“From sites yielding evidence of prehistoric encampments, to eighteenth-century farms, to commercial buildings of the early twentieth century, our history can be traced by what remains on
the landscape. The preservation of these remnants helps us to retain our sense of history and community. It also aids in the education of our children and our new residents by showing them,
through the history embodied in their everyday surroundings, the depth and breadth of our
common heritage RIHPHC 2012.”
Many jurisdictions have a process for cataloging and protecting heritage sites in Rhode Island. These include the National Register of Historic Places, the Rhode Island Historical
Preservation and Heritage Commission, municipalities’ local historic districts, the Narragansett Indian Tribal Historic Preservation Office, and local preservation societies. All of these entities
may be helpful sources of information when considering the potential historic and cultural impacts of a solar energy installation.
3.6 Public Acceptance Public acceptance is an important yet hard-to-predict variable in the siting of solar energy
projects on capped landfills. Although landfills arguably present a public acceptance issue in themselves, it should be recognized that capped landfills are designed to be as innocuous as
possible. Thus, the addition of solar energy installations to landfill caps may present new impacts that affect quality of life in the immediate vicinity. Potential impacts relevant to public
acceptance include competition with other adaptive reuse interests discussed in Section 2.4.1, visual impacts, and acoustic impacts, as well as the environmental impacts discussed throughout
this section.
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Visual impacts are perhaps the most salient impact related to public acceptance of landfill-based solar energy facilities. Addition of solar panels to an otherwise inconspicuous
capped landfill may be seen as visually intrusive. The manmade materials and right angles typical of solar panels and laminate films may prevent solar facilities from blending seamlessly
into rural or scenic landscapes. Though solar panels lack the height and moving parts associated with wind turbines, the subjective responses to these two forms of renewable energy experienced
by viewers may be shaped by some of the same factors, such as character and scenic quality of a landscape Bishop 2002; Lothian 2006; Vissering et al. 2011, topography Vissering et al.
2011, personal feelings towards this new form of energy Bishop 2002; Cownover et al. 2010, perceived economic benefits Thayer and Hansen 1988, array design Cownover et al. 2010,
and perceived compatibility with the surrounding landscape Phadke et al. 2009. Solar energy facilities sited in areas valued for their natural beauty can be expected to raise a greater level of
objection from the public than those sited in areas considered less visually appealing Tsoutsos et al.
2005. Potential visual impacts can be assessed prior to project construction through visual
impact assessment and public input. Visual impact assessments are systematic analyses of potential impacts to scenery resulting from a proposed development. Visual impact assessment
tools can take a range of forms. The simplest are artists’ sketches or altered photographs showing profile views of what a proposed facilitiy would look like within a landscape. More advanced
methods include computer maps, 3-D models, animations, and interactive virtual reality environments Macaulay 2010. A complete assessment incorporates both objective and
subjective considerations and performs formal evaluations of the means available to mitigate any negative impacts Macaulay 2010.
Other potential impacts include noise and economic considerations. In contrast to wind turbines, solar energy facilities generally do not produce enough noise to become a public
nuisance. Moreover, facilities that do produce low levels of noise in their day-to-day operation are limited to doing so only during hours of sunlight and are thus unlikely to cause disruption at
night when neighbors are sleeping Tsoutsos et al. 2005. Public acceptance of new solar energy installations may be higher in cases where they lead to local investment and job creation and
when the energy produced is available to local ratepayers at an attractive price Heras- Saizarbitoria et al. 2011.
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