Land‑Smart Renewable Energy: Turning the Climate Transition into a Restoration Opportunity

The transition away from fossil fuels will push the land area used for solar, wind and other renewable installations from the current roughly 500,000 hectares to about three million hectares by 2032. UNEP’s Biodiversity and Land Branch describes this as one of the biggest land‑use changes in recent history. Planners are therefore urged to begin with a landscape‑scale assessment—looking at biodiversity, water flows, flood exposure and community needs—before picking sites, so that the expansion does not simply shift impacts from one place to another.

Examples from several regions illustrate how renewable infrastructure can be paired with other land uses. In South Africa, former mining sites have been converted into solar farms, while in China’s Taklamakan and Tengger deserts solar arrays are combined with vegetation planting, water‑catching gutters and sand‑stabilisation measures that support livestock and reduce erosion. In India, a solar‑irrigation scheme enables smallholder farmers to place panels on marginal plots, power water pumps for crops and sell surplus electricity. These pilots show that solar projects can coexist with agriculture and ecosystem services.

Renewable projects can also create new pressures. In Malawi’s Shire River Basin, the cumulative effect of several hydropower schemes has been identified as a potential stressor for fisheries, biodiversity and downstream communities. Experts therefore stress the importance of integrating local knowledge, which can reveal drought‑prone or flood‑sensitive zones that technical assessments might overlook. Engaging residents early in Mongolia and elsewhere helps match technologies to terrain and increases the chance that overall impacts on ecosystems and livelihoods are positive rather than merely neutral.