New Delhi: Rapid expansion of solar farms in China is linked to a reduction in bird diversity as cropland and grassland are cleared for development, a new report has said, calling the trend a green dilemma that pits carbon reduction against conservation.
Both resident and migratory bird species showed significant declines in areas of rapid solar development, with stronger effects observed in wealthier and non‑desert regions, the report from France 24 said citing Chinese research.
Species native to mountain habitats that are poorly suited to solar farms were largely unaffected, the report said citing a study, which analysed policy‑driven solar growth across 2,344 Chinese counties from 2014 to 2023.
The research paired that data with citizen‑science bird records, and found that stricter pro‑solar policies were consistently linked with declines in bird biodiversity.
“The main message is not to slow the renewable energy transition, but to make solar development more ecologically informed,” the report cited first author Huiming Zhang of Nanjing University of Information Science & Technology.
China aims to achieve carbon neutrality before 2060 and the country’s solar footprint reached nearly 4,520 square kilometers by 2024– equivalent in size to the US state of Rhode Island.
Solar locations are chosen based on the government’s “Five-Year Plans” to promote economic development in certain regions rather than land availability or intensity of sunlight.
Though the administration mandated greening efforts to satisfy environmental requirements, the rise in leafiness “was too homogeneous and the ecological quality went down,” the report criticised.
The research team suggested implementing large solar projects in areas with lower ecological conflict after greater assessments of each site, and limiting land conversion in productive, habitat-rich regions.
“Clean energy development and biodiversity conservation do not have to come at each other’s expense, but careful siting and biodiversity safeguards are essential,” the report cited Zhang.
