Author(s)

L.-I. Tegou, H. Polatidis & D. A. Haralambopoulos

Abstract

Site selection is a critical issue for wind energy projects, with particular limitations in cases of isolated islands. This paper develops an integrated framework to evaluate land suitability for wind turbine siting that combines multi-criteria analysis (MCA) with geographical information systems (GIS); an application of the proposed framework for the island of Lesvos, Greece is further illustrated. A set of environmental, economic, social, and technical constraints, based on recent Greek legislation, is used to limit the potential sites for wind power installation. The remaining area is evaluated by a variety of factors, such as wind power potential, land use, electricity demand, visual impact, land value, and distance to electricity grid. The analytic hierarchy process (AHP) method is applied to estimate the factors’ weights in order to establish their relative importance in site evaluation. The overall suitability of the study region for wind turbine siting is appraised through the use of the simple additive weighting (SAW) method. A collateral scope of this study is the consideration of the most updated Greek legislation for renewable energy facilities siting, in order to investigate the influence of specific factors on site suitability. Results showed that only 1.3% of the total area of Lesvos could be viable for wind turbine installation, although favourable wind potential exists in bigger parts of the island. Keywords: wind turbine siting, geographical information systems, multi-criteria analysis, analytic hierarchy process.

Keywords

wind turbine siting, geographical information systems, multi-criteria analysis, analytic hierarchy process