Effectiveness

• The large panels of photovoltaic parks in deserts receive the rays of the sun directly and store its power for domestic and industrial use. As sun in deserts is almost always present during the day, solar plants work non-stop and save energy throughout the year. The Mojave Desert solar plant, run by Israel-based Solel Solar Systems, now part of Siemens (energy.siemens.com), is a prominent example of effectiveness. As reported by MSNBC in 2007, California utility company PG&E Corp. (pgecorp.com) purchased enough energy from the park to power 400,000 homes in the state.
  
  

Limited Effect on Biodiversity

• According to EurActiv, "no source of energy can claim to have zero impact on biodiversity." Windmills upset the migratory patterns of birds, biofuel cultivation is a direct or indirect cause of deforestation and hydroelectric dams require flooding local habitats. On the contrary, solar parks do not have noticeable effects on local biodiversity, as there is no significant flora and fauna in desert environments.
  
  

Efficient Land Use

• As Eleni Despotou, secretary-general of the European Photovoltaic Industry Association (epia.org), stated at EurActiv, they are "against putting photovoltaic parks in high productivity land." However, solar parks in deserts do not take up land that could be used for another purpose, such as farming and residential or industrial expansion. There is virtually nothing else you can do on desert soil. Therefore, a massive plant absorbing the sun's energy is the most efficient method of exploiting the area.
  
  

Benefits for Neighboring Areas

• Solar parks do not only benefit the local economy, but stored power can also be used by close -- and not-so-close -- neighbors. An example of neighbors benefiting from a solar park in a nearby desert is the aforementioned PG&E Corp. Furthermore, "The Guardian," a British newspaper, reported in 2008 that European Union scientists suggested the development of a super-grid on the world's largest hot desert, the Sahara, to provide electricity for the whole of the European continent.