Sustainability trade-offs across modeled floating solar waterscapes of the Northeastern United States
In the northeast U.S., floating photovoltaic solar energy can help to spare land resources from solar development, although biodiversity and recreation trade-offs exist. Even in a scenario where trade-offs are strictly avoided, floating solar energy can still constitute 5% of the Northeast’s utility-scale solar energy generation mix. Opportunities for co-location make this a conservative estimate.
Subject Tags
- Renewable energy
- Biodiversity
Abstract
Expansion of floating photovoltaic (FPV) solar systems provides a low-conflict renewable energy option to help mitigate climate change while sparing land, but potential sustainability trade-offs remain unquantified. We compare the technical potential of maximum FPV deployment to address the climate crisis with FPV-buildout scenarios that prioritize biodiversity and social values across waterscapes. FPV deployment on all technically suitable waterbodies (3.5% of available sites) in the Northeastern U.S. could generate nearly a quarter of the region's solar energy while offsetting all the land required for solar by 2050, but trade-offs, including maintenance of freshwater biodiversity and recreational benefits, exist. Avoidance of socioenvironmental interactions yields FPV-electricity generation potential equal to a 5% increase in regional solar generation while sparing water for biodiversity and social values, though opportunities for co-location make this a conservative estimate. Our framework extends technical potential assessments to holistically inform FPV siting and support diverse Sustainable Development Goals.
Citation
Gallaher, A., Kalies, E.L. and Grodsky, S.M., 2025. Sustainability trade-offs across modeled floating solar waterscapes of the Northeastern United States. Cell Reports Sustainability. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.crsus.2025.100423
TNC Authors
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Elizabeth Kalies
Renewable Energy Scientist
The Nature Conservancy
Email: elizabeth.kalies@tnc.org