facilities are not adequate, or our employees do not receive related adequate training or do not follow these policies, procedures and programs for any reason, the consequences may be harmful to us, which could impair our operations and cause us to incur significant legal liability or fines as well as reputational damage and negatively impact the morale of our employees.
The development, construction, and operation of our projects is subject to various risks relating to land requirements, land use restrictions and potential opposition from landowners, environmental groups, and other third parties, all of which could adversely affect our revenue and ability to grow.
Renewables deployment to-date has occurred in select markets across the United States, primarily in California, Texas, and the Plains, which are characterized by an abundance of inexpensive land. Looking ahead, a significant amount of renewables will be required in all markets across the United States, and we expect that siting projects effectively will become increasingly challenging, especially because according to Bloomberg New Energy Finance, solar and wind projects require approximately 150 times and 350 times more land, respectively, than gas-fired generation for equivalent installed capacity. In many markets, such as CAISO, PJM, NYISO, and ISO-NE, topography, existing land use, and/or transmission constraints limit the availability of sites for solar and wind development. Although land intensity for battery storage is much lower, sites with a persistent energy arbitrage opportunity will also be finite. For these reasons, attractive sites may become a scarce commodity and we may be unable to site our projects at all or on terms similar to those at our current projects.
In addition, our projects are subject to numerous environmental laws, regulations, guidelines, policies and other requirements relating to, among other things, local land use, zoning, building and operational laws and regulations. We may also operate in jurisdictions with little or no land use regulations or programs for installation and operation of our generation and storage projects. Requirements that are in place for energy generation and storage projects may require conformance with specified generation capacities, sound levels, radar setbacks, as well as restrictions on communications interference, shadow flicker, hazards to aviation or navigation, or other potential nuisances.
Due to the amount of land required to site solar and wind projects in particular, there may be greater risk of the presence of (i) pollution, contamination or other wastes at the project site; (ii) protected plant or animal species; (iii) archaeological or cultural resources; or (iv) local opposition to wind and solar projects and pipeline projects in certain markets due to concerns about noise, health, environmental or other alleged impacts of such projects. Please also see “—We are subject to complex environmental, health, and safety laws and regulations that could affect the cost, manner, or feasibility of conducting our operations” and “Business—Environmental Laws and Regulations.”
Energy generation and storage projects, in particular may experience local opposition in certain markets due to claims based on these alleged nuisances, concerns about land use conversion from agriculture or undeveloped land to power generation, or other claims of potential adverse health or environmental impacts, such as misuse of water resources, landscape degradation, land use, food scarcity or price increase. We could experience significant opposition from third parties, including environmental non-governmental organizations, local landowners, neighborhood groups, municipalities and other entities either during the permit application process, including during any public hearings, comment periods or appeal proceedings, or after environmental permits are issued. We could also experience renewed opposition if any permit requires amendment.
Any such opposition may be taken into account by government officials responsible for granting the relevant permits, which could result in the permits being delayed or not being granted or being granted solely on the condition that we carry out certain corrective measures to the proposed project, which could materially increase our operational costs. In addition, we may become subject to legal proceedings or claims contesting the construction or operation of our projects or permits required thereunder. Any such delays, permit restrictions, legal proceedings or disputes (even if ultimately decided in our favor) could materially delay our ability to complete construction of a project in a timely manner, or at all, materially increase the costs associated with commencing or continuing a project’s commercial operations or harm our reputation. Any settlement of claims or
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