Six Principles to Ensure the Energy Transition Is in Harmony with Nature

Environmental degradation due to climate change threatens many ecosystems. Biodiversity is in steep decline while rising temperatures and increasingly extreme weather events continue to break global records each year. Driven by the continuous use of fossil fuels, climate change and air pollution – two major interconnected threats to both human well-being and the planet – push the current imperative to accelerate the transition away from fossil fuels to renewable energy.

Solar and wind energy—which are generally the most cost-effective and rapidly deployable technologies—along with grid expansion and modernisation, are central to the transition. However, their development should take into account land use implications and effects on biodiversity, ecosystems and communities.

With the energy transition needed at scale and speed, renewables deployment must go hand-in-hand with measures to safeguard biodiversity and ecosystems. To minimise impacts, preserve and enhance biodiversity, as well as ensure healthy ecosystems, targeted measures that work in harmony with nature are needed.

The following six principles, built on a range of existing good practices and guidelines, can be used to guide nature-positive siting and permitting of solar, wind, and grid infrastructure:

• Principle 1: Accelerate nature-positive energy development calls for an integrated approach to identifying and designating areas with high potential for renewable energy generation combined with minimal environmental impacts. For instance, in Croatia, smart siting helps to integrate environmental and social data with solar and wind potential leading to identification of land that is suitable for solar and wind development while avoiding ecologically sensitive or culturally significant sites.   
• Principle 2: Co-utilise emphasises that priority should be given to sites that have already been modified and to dual or multiple use of existing structures. By some estimates, there are sufficient such modified areas to meet global energy needs. Examples include agricultural lands, buildings, car parks, degraded lands, and brownfield sites. The picture below shows an example of fishery and solar PV integration in China, where more efficient utilisation of land resources is achieved, and the shading effect also increases yields through better temperature regulation and reduced algae growth
• Principle 3: Conserve, restore and enhance promotes proactive planning to safeguard ecosystems by avoiding damaging impact, returing sites to their original condition whenever possible, or offsetting any unavoidable loss due to the new installation. Setting an industry benchmark, ScottishPower Renewables has undertaken a large-scale peatland restoration project at the UK's largest onshore wind farm Whitelee while also creating community spaces and trails, helping to build public support.
• Principle 4: Monitor and adapt acknowledges that ecosystems are dynamic and complex. Adaptive management approaches and technologies should be used to respond to emerging evidence of wildlife movement or plant growth. For example, projects such as the wind farm in Uzbekistan, built by Masdar, utilise artificial intelligence to adjust their operations and protect birds of prey.
• Principle 5: Extend the useful life refers to measures for existing projects to extend the expected project’s life cycle, thereby continuing to produce energy without the additional environmental impacts associated with new constructions. Repowering of the existing sites with new equipment can restore efficiency and reliability. For example, when Narasus Spinning Mills (a company producing cotton yarn in India) replaced old wind turbines, the annual generation more than doubled. 
• An overarching principle 6: Engage local actors is essential for all projects throughout all the development phases. Measures for community consultation and participation are required to achieve public support and utilise local traditional and scientific knowledge, which will contribute to the long-term success and sustainability of the project. For example, in Sierra Leone the law requires Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC) for any industrial project. The Dutch government and TenneT co-designed the electricity grid expansion through a participatory process involving around 700 citizens and stakeholders that balanced public support with technical and budget needs.

To create an enabling environment for the application of these principles, a more integrated approach is needed to align energy development plans and Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) with international targets on climate, biodiversity and sustainable land management. For any siting and permitting processes, it is essential to include effective biodiversity safeguards and environmental impact mitigation procedures.

More research and practical tools are needed that link technological innovations with both scientific and local knowledge to guide the accelerated renewable energy deployment while halting and reversing biodiversity loss.

The principles are the result of a joint analysis by the IRENA Coalition for Action and CLEANaction members. Read more on these principles, policy examples and case studies in the report: Nature positive energy principles: Environmental siting and permitting of solar, wind and grid infrastructure