Quantifying the trade-offs between renewable energy visibility and system costs.

Visual landscape impacts on scenic and populated places are among significant factors affecting local acceptance of large-scale renewable energy projects. Through the combination of large-scale reverse viewshed and techno-economic energy system analyses, we assess their potential impacts for nationwide energy systems. In our case study of Germany, moderate consideration of visual impact by placing renewables out of sight of the most scenic and densely populated areas does not have a significant impact on future energy system costs and design.