Full Title: More Land is Needed for Solar and Wind Infrastructure Under a High Renewables Scenario in the Western US by 2050
Author(s): Kendall Mongird, Cameron Bracken, Casey D. Burleyson, Konstantinos Oikonomou, Yang Ou, Jennie S. Rice, Travis Thurber, and Nathalie Voisin
Publisher(s): Nature
Publication Date: September 26, 2025
Full Text: Download Resource
Description (excerpt):
Expanding United States electricity infrastructure to meet growing demand could require extensive power plant development footprints and land use conversion, depending on the mix of generation types chosen. Understanding where future power plant sitings are likely to take place and identifying potential conflicts and land-use tradeoffs will be key to identifying feasible and affordable investments and evaluating regional planning coordination needs. Here we use an integrated modeling framework that combines capacity expansion planning, hourly grid operations, and geospatial techno-economic analysis to develop projections (2025-2050) of power plant sitings in the Western United States (US) at a 1 km2 resolution for a business-as-usual scenario and a high renewables penetration scenario. We find that 30% more land will be needed in the high renewables scenario as compared to business-as-usual, and that 75% of that development is projected to be located within 10 km of natural areas.