The fight against climate change requires a transformation of the energy model that is being strongly supported by the policies of the European Union and the Member States.

The spatial materialization of the energy policy to promote renewable energies is a crucial element that has to be concretized on the pre-existing land uses, which in turn causes changes on ecosystems and landscapes. This article investigates the territorial implementation of wind and solar plants in the Iberian Peninsula to assess which types of land use are being most affected. Based on the evolution of energy policy in Spain and Portugal, wind and solar plant developments and land uses are analyzed in a comparative way using thematic mapping published in both Spain and Portugal between 2005 and 2020.

Portugal between 2005 and 2020. The research results show the exclusivity of these developments in rural areas, highlighting the substitution of herbaceous crops together with scrub and grassland cover, causing a significant alteration of rural economies and landscapes.

Cita

Barral, M. Ángeles, Ruíz Díez, A., Prados, M.-J., García-Marín, R., & Delicado, A. (2023). Energías renovables y cambios de usos del suelo en el sur de la Península Ibérica: una lectura territorial de la política energética. Boletín De La Asociación De Geógrafos Españoles, (97). https://doi.org/10.21138/bage.3356