Selection of the most suitable wind power plants areas using geographical information systems based analytical hierarchy method: Gümüşhane example

In today's globalized world, energy has become increasingly important as one of humanity's fundamental needs, particularly with technological advancements. Energy has turned into an indicator of countries' levels of development, and the number of alternative research and studies on this subject has been increasing. The excessive consumption of non-renewable energy sources and rising costs have made the exploration of new energy sources necessary. In this context, Turkey's advantageous geographical location for harnessing wind energy has led to significant initiatives in recent years, especially aimed at meeting energy needs through electricity generation from wind power. In this study, Geographic Information Systems (GIS) technology was used to determine the most suitable locations for wind energy plants within the borders of Gümüşhane province through spatial analyses. The advantage of using GIS in site selection lies in its scientific accuracy. Within this framework, the site selection criteria's for the establishment of a wind energy plant were first identified. These criteria's were determined as wind speed, land use, elevation, distance to the transformer, slope, distance to the road, distance to the fault line, distance to the watercourse, and distance to residential areas. The weights of these criteria, based on their importance, were determined using the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP). Subsequently, bird migration paths, distance to airports, protected areas, forest lands, and military zones were considered constraints and excluded from the evaluation. The GIS analysis identified the most suitable locations, and the constrained areas were excluded from the resulting map. As a result of this study, suitable sites for wind energy plant installation's in Gümüşhane were identified, and base maps were produced to promote renewable energy sources.