Study: California solar energy expansion risks endangered species, but climate change poses greater habitat loss threat.

A study by researchers at the University of California, Davis has found that solar energy expansion in California could accelerate the decline of some endangered species if projects fail to account for shifting ranges of plants and wildlife. The study, published in Nature Climate Change, found that if all announced solar energy projects in California are completed, it would lead to the loss of 1.7 percent of the future habitat of the Joshua tree and 3.9% of the habitat of San Joaquin kit fox by 2070. However, climate change will account for approximately 20 times more habitat loss for both species than solar expansion, the researchers found.