side effects on the environment and health

The generation of energy using raw materials such as sun, wind, biomass and even waste is advancing rapidly in Brazil and around the world. The expectation is that these sources – usually called “clean” or “renewable” – can gradually reduce or limit the use of fossil fuels, such as oil and coal, thus containing greenhouse gas emissions.

But, according to studies and entities that monitor communities where projects are being built, the so-called energy transition brings to light an “other side” that is not always considered: the social and environmental impacts of these technologies.

In Brazil, the renewable sources that stand out most are wind and solar. In 2023 alone, 9 gigawatts (GW) of power came into operation in the sum of wind turbines and photovoltaic panels, which represents almost 90% of the record expansion of the electricity sector in the year (10.3 GW).

Solar energy and wind energy parks, with notable progress in the Northeast of the country, are commonly installed in remote areas, where they cause significant changes in the daily life of the community, flora and fauna. Side effects range from deforestation and noise pollution to health problems for the surrounding population.

In the 2023 Annual Deforestation Report (RAD) with data from 2022, MapBiomas identified at least 69 alerts in areas of wind farms and 23 in areas of photovoltaic plants. In total, 4 thousand hectares of caatinga were deforested due to wind and solar farms, including transmission lines.

The study has been carried out annually for four years and this is the first time that renewable energy infrastructure has been considered as a vector of deforestation.

Washington Rocha, coordinator of the study, explains that the volume is not yet high, but that it is already emerging as the second cause of deforestation in the caatinga biome and that it has shown a growth trend – the first cause is agricultural activity.

In addition to deforestation, two other concerns are the potential risk of desertification and the possibility of generating parks being installed in areas of ecological refuges and places with preserved native vegetation.

The consequences can go far beyond local communities. Any lack of control over vegetation degradation, according to Rocha, will have repercussions on food and water security and irreversible ecological impacts.

Soraya Tupinambá, ecologist at Instituto Terramar and member of the Brazilian Network for Environmental Justice, says that broader social and economic aspects have been left aside in the energy transition.

“We are not against renewable energy. But it cannot be done without disregarding the populations. Humanity is experiencing a problem of scarcity of fresh water, food insecurity, energy poverty. These ecosystems that are fundamental to the local way of life cannot be ignored”, he states .

Romária Holanda, an educator at Instituto Terramar, went into the field and interviewed families who live where wind and solar projects are installed. The reports she heard in Pernambuco, Rio Grande do Norte and Ceará are similar, according to her.

“In addition to deforestation and changes to fauna and flora that are not positive, we observed the population becoming ill. They said that the towers [eólicas] They release dust that causes irritation to the skin and breathing, and the noise and light from wind turbines disrupts sleep at night. All of this causes not only physical but mental illness as well,” she says.

“People stop sleeping, become dependent on medication, develop mental health problems, depression, among other issues,” says Soraya.

Another problem, according to them, refers to the issue of land, whether in possession or ecosystem. According to Soraya, unfair rental contracts often occur, with abusive clauses to the detriment of residents.

Furthermore, the increasing number of large-scale projects affects the soil, causing a cascade effect. She gives as an example the dune fields in Northeast Brazil. Below them, there are large freshwater reservoirs, which irrigate productive areas. If the soil is damaged, it affects reservoirs and, consequently, agricultural production.

“This food production will have repercussions on urban centers”, explains Soraya. “We need to treat it like an industry. An important one, but an industry, which needs to have requirements, respect local communities, have informed prior consultation and be regulated by the International Labor Organization”, he adds.

Risks to vegetation, animals and the surrounding population

In Bahia, threats to fauna and flora mobilized the federal (MPF) and state (MP-BA) public ministries, which requested the suspension of all environmental licenses – preliminary, installation and operational – granted to the Canudos Wind Complex, in the region of Raso da Catarina. The Federal Court granted the request in April last year, but in July the state Court of Justice overturned the decision and authorized the resumption of works.

In 2019, associations of traditional communities expressed concern about the installation of the wind farm and the impacts it could have on fauna and vegetation. In the complaint sent to the MP-BA, they stated that the wind farm is located between dormitories and breeding sites for the Lear’s Macaw, a bird that is at risk of extinction, among other species, also threatening trees that cannot be cut down.

In the neighboring state, a study by the Federal University of Pernambuco (UFPE) found damage to the health of the population surrounding a wind complex in the community of Sobradinho, municipality of Caetés. According to the survey, 70% of community residents take medication for continuous use and 64% take medication to sleep. The houses are located an average distance of 411 meters from the wind turbines.

One of the main complaints is about noise pollution: residents compare it to an airplane turbine that never turns off. Roselma de Oliveira, who lives 160 meters from a generating tower, reported to Agência Brasil problems with allergies, hearing loss, depression and anxiety. “Children, to sleep, it has to be medication-based. We don’t sleep. We doze off and wake up to that terrible noise,” she said in a report published last year.

The Institute of Socioeconomic Studies (Inesc) evaluated another aspect of installing the parks: the lease contracts. The owner who leases his land for the installation of turbines can receive 1% to 1.5% of the revenue generated by the wind turbine. However, Inesc detected asymmetries that favor companies, such as automatic renewals and the possibility of disruption only by the company, according to a report in “Folha de S.Paulo”.

Renewables replace bigger problems with smaller but still significant ones

“The transition is not just a change in energy sources. It reflects a profound transformation in our infrastructure, economy, and in society’s relationship with the environment”, assesses Guilherme Syrkis, executive director of the organization Centro Brasil no Clima.

According to him, by adopting renewable energies, such as solar and wind, larger problems related to fossil fuels are replaced – such as pollution and greenhouse gas emissions – with smaller, but still significant, challenges.

“These include the environmental impact of new installations and the life cycle of electric vehicle batteries. It is crucial to recognize that, although minor, these new problems require innovative solutions and an ongoing commitment to improvement,” he says.

Ricardo Assumpção, ESG lead partner for Latin America South and CSO at EY Brazil, says that companies interested in building wind or solar farms need to assess the risks in the supply chain.

“Currently, there are several studies being developed to evaluate the impact of these infrastructures, which can be analyzed in two ways by the market: there is no relevant impact or it becomes relevant over time”, he says.