Solar Energy and Environmental Impact Assessments
Keywords:
Solar Energy, Environment, ImpactAbstract
As a way of mitigating the effects of climate change and decreasing reliance on fossil fuels, the transition to renewable energy sources, notably solar energy, has gained momentum on a worldwide scale. Several different solar energy systems are examined in this study, which offers a complete evaluation of the environmental implications and sustainability assessments connected with these technologies. Using a wide variety of academic literature, government papers, and industry publications, we conduct an analysis of the environmental consequences that solar photovoltaic (PV) systems and solar thermal technologies have over their entire life cycle. This analysis encompasses the phases of production, installation, operation, and decommissioning. Several important environmental factors, including greenhouse gas emissions, resource utilisation, land utilisation, water usage, and management of end-of-life situations, are investigated in great detail. In addition, we investigate the approaches that may be utilised to carry out life cycle assessments (LCAs) and energy payback time (EPBT) calculations in order to evaluate the effectiveness of solar energy systems in terms of sustainability.
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