Fauna

Deer
Turkeys
Insects
Small Rodents
Hawks
Snakes
Lizards

Effect on Animals
Solar panels can actually have a positive effect on wildlife in the area. It
produces clean energy that does not contribute to greenhouse gasses, global
warming, acid rain, and smog. Also it doesn't have any loud noises producing the
energy. The only disadvantages to solar panels affecting wildlife is the
maintenance of the panels. The only other minor thing that would affect the wildlife
would be the installation of the panels. In the immediate area carrying capacity
would decrease in the area around it and on the site itself but the overall
ecosystem in the area would not be affected in any major way.

Influence on Other Sites

Solar panels help combat greenhouse gas emissions and reduces our collective
dependence on fossil fuel. It will reduce the amount of Co2 emitted into the
atmosphere helping preserve ecosystems all across the state, not just within
Marin County. This large scale solar project could also help push other areas
to create similar plans helping the push to solar across the country and then
the world.

Environment Predictions With The Policy

50 Years: Temperatures are projected to increase and in 50 years plant life will
begin to decline. The increased human activity within the area due to
maintenance would result in periodic human interference, but with a
frequency, it wont be noticeable. As for the initial construction of the area,
laying down the support system for the panels and actually constructing the
panels would devastate the conditions of the topsoil.
100 Years: Temperatures will heighten further, resulting in some of the animals
that are less resistant to change to either move out or adapt to the slightly
different environment. The smog level in the area, though, will continue to
gradually decline due to the decreased amount of coal burning. This would
heighten the quality of the air, though, and also make the impacts on the lake
much less severe.

Environment Predictions With The Policy Continued

300 Years: The periodic maintenance of the solar panels would either cut back
any growing plants or drive away animals that could damage the panels. As
for nearby abiotic factors, the quality of the air would significantly improve due
to cuts on smog production and the carrying capacity would be slightly
diminished due to decrease in nutrition of topsoil.
1000 Years: Most species of plants and animals living today will have died and
be succeeded by new species of organisms which are more hardy and
resilient, or older species with adaptations. The topsoil would be significantly
deteriorate due to continued impacts by man, decreasing the carrying
capacity even further, taking the increasing temperature into account

Environment Predictions Without Policy

50 Years: The amount of pollution attributed to the burning of fossil fuels would
gradually increase, but not to an extremely large extent as of yet. Apart from
increase in smog, progressive increases in temperature would slowly change
the microclimate of the park and Marin County in general, resulting in certain
species of animals and plants either regressing to cooler areas or developing
different mannerisms to adjust to the new circumstances.
100 Years: Assuming the current rates of global oil consumption are attenuated
by increasing usage of alternate, renewable energy resources, the oil
reserves will be less utilized, and a shift towards cleaner energy sources
would be expected, but as for the site, the lack of human interaction would
result in the existing species of hardy wildflowers and native grasses would
continue to propagate, as well as the growth of larger saplings

Environmental Changes Without Policy

300 Years: The increase in temperature would start to affect the plant life and
newer more durable species would begin to populate the area . Due to more
usage of fossil fuels, the rising smog levels would force the water levels to
also rise and increase the water temperature, affecting native species. The
carrying capacity and soil quality would gradually have decreased due to
increased resource consumption by animals as well as erosion of topsoil.
1000 Years: In 1000 years, the carrying capacity or have other buildings on the
same place. The smog in Novato will increase due to no solar panels and
greenhouse gases will increase. The animals in the area from 1000 years ago
will have died off and have been replaced by new species, and the soil quality
would have diminshed greatly due to consistent human interaction in the area,
contributing to the degradation of the topsoil, and the increasing population of
the ecosystem would strain the carrying capacity.

Cremations A La Casey
https://us.sunpower.com/sites/sunpower/files/media-library/data-sheets/ds-x22-s
eries-360-commercial-solar-panels-helix-compatible.pdf
https://www.wikipedia.org/
https://www.google.com/earth/
http://www.marinwatersheds.org/plants.html*harvard.edu