The Disamenity Impact of Solar Farms: A Hedonic Analysis
David Maddison, Reece Ogier, Allan Beltrán
Abstract
Photovoltaic solar farms are utility-level ground-mounted arrays of interconnected panels that convert sunlight into electricity. Little is known about the extent of any disamenity impact from these farms, despite numerous communities objecting to their construction. This study uses a property fixed-effects model to examine the disamenity impact of photovoltaic solar farms on households in England and Wales, as revealed by changes in property prices. Properties located ≤ 750 m south of an operational solar farm greater than 5 megawatts in capacity suffer a 5.4% reduction in relative prices. The effect of solar farms ≤ 5 megawatts in capacity or located more than 750 m south of properties is statistically insignificant.