Effect of Photovoltaic Panel Coverage Rate in Mountainous Photovoltaic Power Stations on the Ecological Environment of Mountainous Landscapes

Facing the severe challenge of global warming, the construction of photovoltaic (PV) power stations has been increasing annually both in China and worldwide, with mountainous areas gradually becoming preferred sites for such projects. Mountain landscapes are ecologically sensitive, and the large-scale installation of PV panels may lead to destruction of the mountain landscape ecological environment. In this study, soil physicochemical properties were measured in 160 soil test plots, and vegetation community conditions were assessed in 26 vegetation test plots at a mountain PV power station in Damiao Town, Chaoyang County, Liaoning Province, China, using a combination of field sampling and laboratory testing. Based on mean values of 15 soil and vegetation indicators under different PV panel coverage rates, calculated via ANOVA in SPSS 27.0 software with Bonferroni-corrected p-values, the effects of various coverage rates on the mountain landscape ecological environment were investigated through multiple comparisons of the mean values. Using the Euclidean distance principle, the similarity ranking between the ecological environment under different PV coverage intervals and the control point was determined as follows: 0% > 0–5% > 15–20% > 5–10% > 10–15% > over 20%. Ultimately, considering the power generation requirements of the PV power station, the 15–20% PV panel coverage rate was identified as the optimal range that minimizes impact on the mountain landscape ecological environment while meeting electricity production demands. Therefore, construction stakeholders should fully consider the influence of PV panel coverage rate on the mountain landscape ecological environment and control the coverage within the 15–20% range according to the power generation needs of mountain PV power stations, so as to mitigate the environmental impact of PV panel installation.