Ecological and environmental effects of global photovoltaic power plants: A meta-analysis

The construction of photovoltaic power plants (PVPPs) globally not only mitigates climate change but also exerts various impacts on terrestrial ecosystems. A comprehensive exploration of the intensity of PVPPs on the ecological environmental elements of terrestrial ecosystems, as well as their regulatory mechanisms, is an urgent scientific issue that must be addressed within the context of carbon balance. In this study, we conducted a meta-analysis to investigate the soil, climate, and biological effects of PVPPs construction, as well as changes in ecosystem CO₂ fluxes. Our analysis synthesized data from 42 original studies encompassing over 4300 observations. Findings revealed that a significant reduction in wind speed and soil temperature within the photovoltaic field, with average changes of -63.55% (confidence intervals (CI): [-70.77, -56.32]) and -9.72%, CI [-18.51, -0.93], respectively. Concurrently, there was an average increase of 301.63%, CI [14.14, 589.13] in soil moisture content and gross primary productivity, and 28.52%, CI [14.29, 42.75], respectively. However, no significant effects were observed on other ecological environmental factors. Both the random forest model and mixed effects model highlighted key driving factors such as air temperature and humidity, location under the photovoltaic panel, monthly variations, geographical environment, and photovoltaic scale, which influenced the ecological responses to PVPPs. Furthermore, statistical cluster analysis demonstrated that the thresholds of key driving factors will significantly affect the response of ecological environment factors to PVPPs. This study enhances our comprehension of the ecological and environmental implications of PVPPs construction and offers valuable insights for policymakers aiming to implement 'photovoltaic + ecological' integrated management strategies.