Ecosystem responses to solar photovoltaic farms evidence from ecophysiology and biomonitoring studies

While utility-scale solar photovoltaic (PV) farms are being deployed around the world as a climate change mitigation and carbon-neutral energy transition strategy, there is still limited understanding of localized ecological impacts such as microclimate, soils, vegetation, and wildlife, especially in tropical ecosystems. This review synthesizes recent literature and focuses on three thematic areas, namely microclimate modification at PV site, ecophysiological responses (plants and animals) and biomonitoring approach for ecosystem assessment under solar PV farms. This review references peer-reviewed literature accessed via the major scientific databases, with special emphasis on recent studies that reflect the rapid expansion of exploration of the solar system and practical advances in the monitoring of ecological processes. Previous studies demonstrate that photovoltaic (PV) installations may change near surface temperature, radiation balance, wind flow and moisture regimes via panel shading, alterations to surface energy balance or photovoltaic heat island effects. These microclimatic alterations affect soil structure and microbial activity and plant photosynthesis and water relations and the behavior and physiology of birds, insects, mammals, reptiles, and amphibians. Biomonitoring methods such as vegetation indicators, soil biological indicators, insect and bird surveys, and remote sensing methods represent valuable tools for identifying the effects of ecological pressure and facilitating long-term environmental monitoring. Given Liberia’s biodiversity, sensitivity to ecological disruptions, interest in renewable energy development, and lack of monitoring data from which to build comprehensive land-use plans, we examine it as a typical tropical representative case. This review, by combining ecophysiology and biomonitoring views, provides a basis for scaling up ecophysiological studies to inform sustainable solar farm design, environmental monitoring and policy development that will aid the alignment of renewable energy expansion with tropical biodiversity conservation and ecosystem service protection.