Photovoltaic Solar Energy from Urban Sprawl: Potential for Poland

Abstract

Urban sprawl is a process that shapes contemporary urban spaces. Generally, this process is associated with negative effects due to the generation of high costs. However, not all the effects of urban sprawl should be considered in the context of the increasing costs of the use of space; some of them should be regarded as cost cutting factors, for example, the possibility of the use of roofed areas in generating energy from sunlight. Solar energy is believed to be one of the sources of clean energy that reduce pollution and greenhouse gas emissions into the atmosphere. However, solar energy generation necessitates the development of large areas for the purpose of installing photovoltaic modules and substantial funds for creating large solar farms. For this reason, a significant role in state energy policies is played by small dispersed installations mounted on the roofs of buildings. There is a gap in existing research on the assessment of urban sprawl in terms of the potential use of rooftops for solar installations in suburban areas. This research gap has not yet been filled, either conceptually and methodologically. Hence, the contribution of the research to the development of the current state of knowledge involves the identification of economic and environmental benefits of usually negatively perceived urban sprawl. The proposal of a method for the identification of suburban housing potential for solar energy generation constitutes another addition to the state of knowledge. The main objective of this article is to analyse the energy generating potential of buildings located in suburban and urban areas characterised by the confirmed occurrence of urban sprawl phenomena. CityGML data were used to conduct an analysis of the exposure of roofs to sunlight using algorithms based on vector data. The authors estimated the dynamics of changes in time and referred the existing photovoltaic installations to the total potential of a selected area. The use of the energy potential of the analysed roofs of buildings was used to evaluate the external costs and benefits of spatial planning. The discussion presented the current conditions of the energy sector and energy policies in Poland and the EU. In addition, recommendations were proposed for local spatial policies concerning the mitigation of the effects of suburbanization in the context of developing the system of PV micro-installations.

Household energy consumption and the financial feasibility of self-consumption through photovoltaic panels in Spain

“…Some newly constructed residential buildings have solar panels built into the roof during construction. Installing solar panels on new buildings, especially on the roof to save space and to reduce land costs and visual impact (Al-Quraan et al, 2022;Hołuj et al, 2021), is useful but leaves out all existing structures. In short, there are solutions for single-family homes and new buildings, but there are currently no incentives to encourage the rest of the families, which make up the majority of Spanish households and have a lower average income, to move towards self-consumption through solar panels, despite the high cost of traditional energy supply.…”

A Review of the Development of Solar Energy Capacity in Turkey

“…4, the fastest progress in the past decade has been made by Poland, which increased its solar energy capacity from 2 MW in 2013 to 11,167 MW in 2022, and the Netherlands, which elevated its solar energy potential from 650 MW in 2013 to 22,590 MW. The primary objective of this development is to enhance energy efficiency and reduce the environmental footprint of the energy sector in these countries, in addition to aligning with the legal targets outlined in the state's energy policy [15,16]. Germany, on the other hand, holds the position of being the leading European country that has consistently advanced its solar energy capacity over the years.…”

Socio-Economic Resilience of Poland’s Lignite Regions

“…The discussion about the energy transformation in Poland is multifaceted, highlighting in the first place the obstacles resulting from the structure of energy production, the quality of infrastructure as well as the political and social issues [14][15][16]. Among the many detailed issues emphasising the importance of a given factor, researchers also focus on legal issues, related to both the national and local law, especially regarding the possibility of creating infrastructure generating energy from renewable sources [17][18][19]. In addition, the diversity of local conditions and resources also draws the attention of researchers to the territorial dimension of the issue of energy transformation, particularly in connection with the search for the correctness of spatial differentiation in the social and economic subsystem related to energy production and consumption [20,21].…”