The threat of energy diversification to a bioregion: a landscape-level analysis of current and future impacts on the US Chihuahuan Desert

McClung, Maureen R.; Taylor, Nathan T.; Zamzow, B.; Stone, E. Taylor; Abad, Helena; Moran, Matthew D.

doi:10.1007/s10113-019-01525-4

Cited by 15 publications

(19 citation statements)

References 55 publications

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“…The differences likely take root in either slightly different methodology and/or regional differences in infrastructure patterns. Jordaan et al's method more heavily relied on infrastructure datasets to locate infrastructure, while McClung et al (2019) relied more on visual inspection of developments over time using satellite images. The average increases to 8.95 m 2 /MWh if the cumulative land footprint of the wells is considered over 30 years.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Second, our analysis relied on prior literature published by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (Denholm et al, 2009) due to challenges in characterizing wind turbines because of their large data populations. Similarly, our estimates for the land required for natural gas supply chain estimates were sourced from a prior study on the region (McClung et al, 2019). Focused research on developing machine learning and image processing methods would support detailed datasets characterizing land use of energy infrastructure types with larger populations, particularly those fuel types with numerous infrastructure elements that expand over large areas (e.g., wind turbines and natural gas development).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Our analysis leveraged results from a prior study to estimate the land requirements of the fuel supply in the region (McClung et al, 2019). The full land requirements of natural gas (combining the fuel supply and electricity generation), electricity from wind turbines, and solar generation were estimated using Equations ( 1)-( 3) and reported in meters squared per Megawatt-hour (m 2 /MWh) of electricity generated over the lifetime of the 2017a; Energy Information Administration, 2017b) over a 30-year lifetime (e.g., Spath and Mann (2000), Fthenakis and Kim (2010)).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Land is increasingly developed and modified in the region not only due to energy developments but also agricultural activity and urbanization (McClung et al, 2019;Wolaver et al, 2018). About one third of the region has already been developed or highly fragmented by the oil and gas activity in the Permian Basin region, one of the richest fossil fuel areas of North America (Energy Information Administration, 2020b).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…About one third of the region has already been developed or highly fragmented by the oil and gas activity in the Permian Basin region, one of the richest fossil fuel areas of North America (Energy Information Administration, 2020b). The Chihuahuan Desert region holds advantages in developing renewable projects, with excellent solar and wind resources (McClung et al, 2019;National Renewable Energy Laboratory, 2015). Texas ranks first of the US states in terms of wind energy generation, in part because of activity in this desert (Tso et al, 2019).…”

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confidence: 99%

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Quantifying the ecosystem services values of electricity generation in the US Chihuahuan Desert: A life cycle perspective

Jordaan

Lee

McClung

et al. 2021

J of Industrial Ecology

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Despite increasing attention, the quantification of ecosystem services values in life cycle assessment (LCA) remains nascent relative to other impact categories. In this analysis, we develop and implement a novel approach for quantifying both land requirements and ecosystem services values based on The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity framework. Our case study focuses on energy infrastructure in the US portion of the Chihuahuan Desert, a location that has high resource potential for multiple types of energy. The analysis focuses on the land requirements of three types of power plants from a life cycle perspective: natural gas, solar, and wind. The mean land-use intensity for natural gas, solar, and wind electricity is estimated to be 0.27, 0.68, and 0.064 meters squared per Megawatt-hour (m 2 /MWh), respectively. When considering cumulative land use of the upstream natural gas supply chain, solar breaks even with gas within 10 years. Mean ecosystem services costs are $0.54, $1.39, and $0.12 USD/MWh for electricity generated from natural gas, solar, and wind, respectively. Ecosystem services costs for developments in this region are low relative to levelized costs of electricity (<5%) but are subject to low values compared to other types of ecosystems. Results will vary with regionalized ecosystem services values and different products. Although the results of this study are specific to electricity generation in the Chihuahuan Desert with 2016 as the baseline year, our approach is applicable across regions, scales, and product systems within LCA. This article met the requirements for a gold-silver JIE data openness badge described at http://jie.click/badges.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

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confidence: 99%

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Quantifying the ecosystem services values of electricity generation in the US Chihuahuan Desert: A life cycle perspective

Jordaan

Lee

McClung

et al. 2021

J of Industrial Ecology

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Time, climate, and soil settings set the course for reclamation outcomes following dryland energy development

Lupardus,

Sengsirirak,

Griffen

et al. 2023

Land Degrad Dev

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Soil attributes, climate, and time since reclamation have important implications for oil and gas reclamation success on drylands. It is uncertain if reclaimed well pads, on highly degraded drylands, can successfully regain ecological function or meet indicator benchmarks for reclamation. Here, our goals were to assess patterns in reclamation outcomes relative to (1) soil attributes, climate, and time since reclamation; and (2) plant and soil reference benchmarks. We collected a suite of plant, soil, and landscape characteristics from 134 reclaimed well pads on the Colorado Plateau that spanned climate and soil gradients and ranged from 2 to 20 years post‐reclamation, then compared characteristics to those from 583 reference plots. On the reclaimed pads, less saline soils, more mesic climates, and longer time since reclamation were associated with favorable reclamation outcomes based on metrics of plant species richness and diversity, plant structure, and cover of important plant functional groups. However, most pads had major departures in 1/4 indicators, suggesting unsuccessful reclamation. Arid warm locations with shallow soils had the greatest percentage of major departures, and noxious plant richness had the greatest departures across soil and climate settings. Our assessment indicates reclamation is failing in key metrics for most pads, and the results highlight the role of environmental conditions in driving reclamation outcomes. These new insights are valuable for ascertaining possible reclamation outcomes and success rates following energy related disturbance, including orphaned wells and renewable energy development. Importantly, the approach used here has applicability for setting benchmarks and outcome standards.

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Potential for Reclamation of Abandoned Gas Wells to Restore Ecosystem Services in the Fayetteville Shale of Arkansas

Nallur

McClung

Moran

2020

Environmental Management

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The threat of energy diversification to a bioregion: a landscape-level analysis of current and future impacts on the US Chihuahuan Desert

Cited by 15 publications

References 55 publications

Quantifying the ecosystem services values of electricity generation in the US Chihuahuan Desert: A life cycle perspective

Quantifying the ecosystem services values of electricity generation in the US Chihuahuan Desert: A life cycle perspective

Time, climate, and soil settings set the course for reclamation outcomes following dryland energy development

Potential for Reclamation of Abandoned Gas Wells to Restore Ecosystem Services in the Fayetteville Shale of Arkansas

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