These two maps use information from Dominion Power, Virginia’s Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ), and the PJM queue (required for developers to gain access to Virginia’s electric grid).
The first downloadable map shows just how many acres of land will be consumed by industrial-scale solar projects that are at various stages of planning by developers, if all these projects are completed in coming years. (Answer: over 498,000 acres, which equates to over 750 square miles.)
And the second illustrates how many solar panels will flood into Virginia, if all solar projects are approved and completed. (Answer: over 158 MILLION!) It’s worth asking where, exactly, all those panels will go when solar projects are dismantled.
Downloadable versions:
Other maps:
- Solar and the Chesapeake Bay watershed
- Solar and southern Virginia watersheds (under construction)