Renewable energy such as solar power can help to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, but can it also improve the health of the people who live near such projects? Resources for the Future, a think tank based in Washington, D.C., is highlighting a study that explored the rapid expansion of solar power in Chile.
In a press release introducing the study, Resources for the Future wrote:
The Atacama Desert, an extreme region in northern Chile that draws comparisons to Mars, has the highest solar power potential of anywhere on the planet. Between the arid conditions, Chilean regulatory incentives, and declining solar costs, solar capacity in the desert has soared over the past 12 years. But does this rapid growth in renewable energy mean anything for the health of people who live in the area?
A new peer-reviewed article, published earlier this month as a preprint in the Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, quantifies the short-term health benefits of this explosion in new solar capacity. The authors find that new solar generation displaced coal as a source of energy and led to a notable reduction in hospital admissions related to respiratory illnesses—especially for those who live within 10 kilometers downwind of a coal plant that generated less energy due to solar expansion.
Resources for the Future, May 31, 2024
Resources for the Future also shared this from one of its fellows, Beia Spiller, who co-authored the paper:
“Chile provides an interesting case study because solar power came onto the scene so quickly there and became the primary source of low-emitting power; this allows us to more cleanly identify the impacts of solar build-out in a way that we cannot in many other places. What our findings show is that a rapid energy transition can have measurable benefits for public health, not just emissions reductions.”
Beia Spiller, Resources for the Future Fellow
Citation: Nathaly M. Rivera, J. Cristobal Ruiz-Tagle, Elisheba Spiller, “The health benefits of solar power generation: Evidence from Chile,” Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Volume 126,
2024, 102999, ISSN 0095-0696. (Published online May 9, 2024).
