Energy transitions and their impacts in mountain areas

Abstract/Description

Preserving ecosystems of high ecological integrity is a crucial target in the Kunming- Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, also serving the 10 % target of strict land protection in the European Union. In 2022, the Greek government initiated the first European roadless policy, banning so far road construction and land conversion to artificial land (land take) in nine roadless mountains to protect biodiversity and landscapes from fragmentation. Although Europe is the most road-fragmented continent, it still holds wilderness areas that should be strictly protected. The roadless land in Greece (6.1 percent) includes 298 roadless areas from 10 to 382 km2, being resilient to fires and satisfying wilderness criteria. However, the expansion of Renewable Energy Sources threatens almost half of the roadless land in Greece, particularly wind power stations (WPS) affecting one-third of roadless areas. Land take from wind power stations is 3.5 times higher in Greece than the global average; it increased with the number and size of wind turbines, the absence of other existing infrastructures and the elevational difference across new access roads. New wind power stations in Greece are planned to be installed at higher elevations and in terrains facing higher risks for soil erosion and soil biodiversity. The general tendency in the European Union is to sit fewer wind power stations in mountainous and forested land. Still, this pattern is inversed in several countries, particularly in Southern Europe. After screening 29 policy and legal documents, we found that land take is indirectly inferred in the global policy but more directly in the European policy through five non-legally binding documents and three Directives. The current European energy policies seem to conflict with nature conservation policies, risking land take acceleration and wilderness loss. The study provides policy insights for reducing land take when sitting wind turbines and for integrating wilderness into the European environmental policy, through extending roadless areas preservation. Preserving wilderness in European mountains is the most efficient and cost-effective proactive way to hamper biodiversity loss and ecosystem function degradation, in the frame of the Nature Restoration Regulation.