Analysis of Solar Power Land Use in Massachusetts through the Lens of Environmental Justice

Abstract

The need to mitigate the impacts of climate change and increase energy security has driven the transition from carbon-intensive fuels to renewable energy sources. Among possible options for renewable energy sources, solar energy is becoming a promising technology. In order to make solar arrays feasible for supplying energy to a growing population, large areas of land are required for sun capture. Using data from the U.S. Census, in combination with a remotely-sensed estimation of new solar arrays in Massachusetts, we investigated the relationship between the distribution of utility-scale solar and four dimensions of environmental justice: people of color, language isolation, household income, and educational attainment. We found that land value is not a significant predictor of the percentage of the census tract covered by a utility-scale solar array in urban tracts. Of urban tracts that contain a utility-scale solar array, all environmental justice variables are significant predictors of the percentage of tract coverage by utility-scale solar arrays. However, there is no evidence of environmental justice factors influencing the presence of utility-scale solar arrays in non-urban tracts.