A GIS-Based Decision Support System for Environmental Siting Consulting of Onshore Wind Projects

Onshore wind deployment is expanding rapidly, yet project timelines are frequently delayed by environmental conflicts and repeated information requests during environmental impact assessment (EIA). To support early-stage planning and reduce downstream uncertainty, we present a GIS-based Environmental Siting Consulting Decision Support System (DSS) for onshore wind development. The DSS operationalizes the national environmental assessment guidance for onshore wind and is designed to identify key EIA issues in advance while maintaining procedural continuity from pre-screening to formal assessment.

Unlike conventional pre-screening that focuses on simple overlaps with protected areas, our approach implements a stepwise logic that evaluates avoidance, adjustment, and mitigation feasibility. It integrates an expanded pre-siting geodatabase covering ecological value and protected-species indicators (e.g., ecological zoning, vegetation conservation grades), terrain and geohazards (e.g., ridge-core zones, slope, landslide risk, faults), landscape and cultural receptors, noise-sensitive facilities, and water-environment constraints.

Users delineate candidate sites as polygons and linear features, including multi-line layouts that better represent access roads and infrastructure corridors. The system performs dual-scale analysis: a 10 m “core” zone for quantifying land-use composition within the project boundary and a 500 m buffer for screening surrounding sensitive layers and potential indirect impacts. Results are delivered as a standardized, map-rich report that mirrors the structure of the official review/notification document, enabling transparent “why/where” explanations of constraints and priority review items.

This DSS improves predictability and transparency for developers and reviewers, supports iterative design adjustments before formal EIA, and provides a scalable pathway for evidence-based, conflict-aware renewable energy siting.