Monica DUMITRASCU, Institute of Geography, Romanian Academy, Romania
Alexandra VRINCEANU, Institute of Geography, Romanian Academy, Romania
Ines GRIGORESCU, Institute of Geography, Romanian Academy, Romania
Gheorghe KUCSICSA, Institute of Geography, Romanian Academy, Romania
Cristina DUMITRICA, Institute of Geography, Romanian Academy, Romania
Irena MOCANU, Institute of Geography, Romanian Academy, Romania
Bianca MITRICA, Institute of Geography, Romanian Academy, Romania
The general economic and environmental concern in terms of energy production and use is to seek out for new resources to sustainably meet the increasing demand for clean and safe energy. Thus, increasing the share of renewable energy use has been one of the main instruments to be considered under the EU energy efficiency targets. Romania has significant and diversified renewable energy resources (RES) potential (wind, solar, hydro, geothermal and biomass) determined by its favourable environmental conditions (i.e., relief and climate) which are continuously subject to spatial changes. The purpose of this study is to highlight the land use/cover changes (LUCC) related to the dynamics of RES use and production in Romania over the past decade. The focus will be on LUCC related to solar energy production, followed by wind and energy crops. For example, in Romania, between 2013 and 2018, 304 photovoltaic power plants were built, with surfaces ranging from 0.18 and 141.8 ha and installed power of 0.05 to 70 MW, mainly expanding on arable land (over 70%). Also, wind farms and energy crops (e.g., willow, paulownia, acacia) are constantly expanding over arable land and pastures.
The investigation will be at regional level (NUTS 2) and will address (1) the main driving forces (policies, subsidies, distance to infrastructure/urban areas) and (2) the consequences associated with these LUCC (e.g., land consumption, land degradation, biodiversity loss). To achieve that, both quantitative (spatial and statistical analyses) and qualitative (expert judgement, questionnaires and interviews) methods and data will be used. The overall results of the study reveal the relationship between RES dynamics and land use/cover change to further support science-based solutions for sustainable development.
Mots clés : land use/cover changes|policies|renewable energy|Romania
A104391MD