Lab Report

by Andrew Akinmola

City University of New York 

ENGL 21007-K: Writing for Engineers 

Spring 2022 

Professor Danielle Carr 

Andrew Akinmola 

Lab Report:  

“Strategic land use analysis for solar energy development in New York State” 

Date: March 29, 2022 

Table of Contents 

  1. Abstract ________________________________________________________ (1+2) 

    1.1 Graphical abstract___________________________________________________ (1) 

  1. Introduction ____________________________________________________ (1 + 2) 
  1. Procedure ______________________________________________________ (2 + 3) 
  1. Conclusion ___________________________________________________________  
  1. References ___________________________________________________________  
  1. Audience Analysis Sheet 1 + 2____________________________________(10 + 11) 
  1. Reflection Paper ___________________________________________________ (12) 

Page Break 

Abstract  

This study or lab report determines the existing utility-scale solar energy (USSE) development in New York State and determines if the land which is contained within the state suitable for this development. The way in which we will be proving whether this land is suitable for USSE development is by using GIS-MCDA techniques. Slope, proximity to facilities that serve as energy supplies, protected lands, and the quality of the soil were considered criteria to determine the suitability of the land. Due to 40% of present USSE capacity being developed on agricultural lands, and 84% of identified land proven suitable for development being agricultural as well, the prime target for future USSE development will be agricultural lands.  

Graphical Abstract 

In this portion of the lab, it displays a map of New York which utilizing green, yellow, and blue dots depict a portion of land as suitable or unsuitable for the solar energy development. In the graph it shows the demographics of those areas which can suit those lands, the ones that are best suited to do so being farmlands. 

Introduction 

Several national and subnational have decided on locations in which they would like to begin with renewable energy generation and decarbonization. Decarbonization literally means the reduction or removal of carbon. In terms relating to the environment, a conversion to an economic system which sustainably reduces and allows us to get closer to ridding the planet carbon dioxide emissions. It is believed that moving from non-renewable sources over to sources that are more renewable would allow the reduction of these carbon emissions. Currently, 85% of the buildings and appliances in New York are powered by non-renewable sources, those being fossils fuels. To progress with this goal of eliminating carbon emissions we would have to find bodies of land which are well suited for the development of USSE or utility-scale solar energy. This will be experimentally found using GIS-MCDA techniques which will determine if a body in New York State can service the development of USSE. 

Procedure + Results 

To conduct this experiment, we use an application of GIS-MCDA for siting, which the general algorithm for, is depicted in the picture below: 

The follow graphs depict the land use analysis of USSE installations in New York State which have already been constructed and are being utilized now. Graphs (A), (B), and (C) show the land use analysis in terms of the slope of the land, in terms of distance away from electric substations and in terms of percent tree canopy or how much trees shade an area.  

Following the algorithm that was previously stated, we used the GIS-MCDA method for this experiment. All the analysis which was conducted was done in the ArcGIS Pro software (version 2.3). 

  • The first thing we did was create a list of 336 solar installations in NYS with capacity above 1 MW and are either completed or under-development.  
  • We then took the spatial criteria of slope, land cover or tree canopy, farmland quality, and distance from electric generation stations and analyzed them against existing solar installations. 
  • For all the spatial analysis conducted from here on as well as the feasibility surface, a 30m-by-30m horizontal grid across the entire area of NYS was used. This surface is a binary surface with each pixel being characterized as either feasible or infeasible. 
  • We then created scenarios to further examine the feasibility surface, for examining land suitability, the slope, and other factors were studied which each area of criteria being labeled good (3), medium (2), poor (1), or least suitable (0). 

Scoring of suitability criteria. 

Criteria Criteria Unit Good (3) Medium (2) Poor (1) Least Suitable (0) 
Slope % 0–3 3–7 7–13.5 >13.5 
Land Cover NLCD land cover type Barren Land; Herbaceous; Hay/Pasture; Cultivated Crops Deciduous Forest; Evergreen Forest; Mixed Forest Shrub/Scrub; Woody Wetlands; Emergent Herbaceous Wetlands  All the infeasible land classes used for feasibility surface 
Quality of Farmland NRCS farmland class Not Prime Farmland (15), NODATA Prime Farmland, if drained (16); Prime Farmland, if protected from flooding (23) – Prime Farmland (1), Farmland of Statewide Importance (3), Farmland of Unique Importance (14) 
Distance from Electric Infrastructure Distance to substations (m) 0–2500 2500–4000 4000–6500 >650 

Conclusion 

The experiment conducted in this lab report was able to show that even though New York has land, which is suitable for USSE, it has a lot more to go when it comes to fully developing a way of utilizing solar energy. This experiment was also able to find out that to conduct USSE development on land that is perceived to be of good suitability then a good portion of hay/pasture and cultivated crop land cover types need to be used for it. To add on to that, this experiment was able to find that around 41% of already existing USSE installation are located on land that is agricultural. Based on this, 85% of the land considered “good-suitability” for USSE development is agricultural land, along with 82% of the medium suitability land. Given this trend for the land use and the characteristics of these good and medium suitability land, the main target for future USSE development will be agricultural land