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Navigating Sustainable Energy Transitions and Environmental Constraints in PV Siting

Author

Listed:
  • Feihu Jiang

    (School of Social and Public Administration, East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai 200237, China)

  • Zhanzhong Zhu

    (School of Art Design and Media, East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai 200237, China)

  • Shengyu Li

    (School of Civil and Hydraulic Engineering, Chongqing University of Science and Technology, Chongqing 401331, China)

  • Jie Zhang

    (School of Art Design and Media, East China University of Science and Technology, Shanghai 200237, China)

Abstract

The rapid expansion of photovoltaic (PV) power has escalated land-use conflicts, making spatial planning a complex socio-economic challenge. Existing Multi-Criteria Decision-Making (MCDM) methods often fail to reconcile top-down macro-climate goals with bottom-up local environmental and infrastructural constraints. To address this dilemma, this study proposes a novel spatial decision support framework integrating a mathematical compromise weighting method-optimizing AHP subjective policy preferences and CRITIC objective physical constraints with GIS-TOPSIS. Applied to China’s seven major geographic regions, the model accurately identifies four socio-economic evolutionary paradigms dictating PV spatial patterns. The results demonstrate that our framework effectively mitigates ecological and agricultural land squeezes, offering a robust tool for policymakers to harmonize renewable energy deployment with sustainable environmental management.

Suggested Citation

  • Feihu Jiang & Zhanzhong Zhu & Shengyu Li & Jie Zhang, 2026. "Navigating Sustainable Energy Transitions and Environmental Constraints in PV Siting," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 18(8), pages 1-26, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:18:y:2026:i:8:p:3915-:d:1920751
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