Abstract. Visual landscape impacts on scenic and populated places are important factors affecting local acceptance to large-scale renewable energy deployment. Through the combination of large-scale viewshed and techno-economic energy system anal-26
yses, we assess their potential impacts for nationwide renewable energy systems. In a case study of Germany, moderate consideration of visual impact by siting renewables out of sight of the most scenic and densely populated areas does not have a significant impact on system costs and design. However, with a higher sensitivity toward visual impacts, annual system costs would increase by up to 38% in the energy sector in 2045. In addition, this strategy would reduce the resilience of the energy system by increasing the reliance on green hydrogen imports and uncertain mass adoption of rooftop photovoltaics. The visual impact of renewable energies cannot be completely eliminated, but careful planning could lead to a socially-acceptable deployment while understanding the implications for system costs and transformation pathways.
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