How does solar affect the environment?

The ways in which solar power has a positive effect on the environment are varied and many. Solar energy is renewable, requires no combustion of fossil fuels, emits zero toxins and is available to everyone on earth. Solar power presents a possible solution and a definite step in the right direction for curbing climate change and cleaning up our air, land and water.

However, as home solar power is scaled up to handle more electric loads, we are discovering ways that solar power can negatively impact the environment. These deal primarily with land and habitat destruction to make room for solar farms and the life cycle of solar products. Hundreds of solar projects in the deserts of the American Southwest, especially in California's Mojave desert, are mired in controversy over the harm they'll do to local habitats and species.

The energy balance of solar panels is also a matter of concern, including the energy spent in their manufacturing, the extraction of metals, toxicity of chemicals used in solar cells, and the matter of recycling the panels, including toxic materials, at the end of their life. Unlike fossil fuel energy sources, solar power's environmental concerns are mitigable. Through planning and innovation, we can accentuate only the positive. That may mean more distributed solar generation (solar rooftops) than remote solar farms, increased used of thinner, organic solar cells and panels, as well as active recycling programs, many of which already exist.