The study area is located southeast of the Atlas mountains
(Fig. 1) and includes the region of Ouarzazate, Ghassate and Ait
Zineb. It occupies an area of approximately 167,595 km2 and has a
population of around 81,240 [25], with the majority of the land
outside the urban area being semi-arid. The phase one solar farm
(NOOR I) installed there has a surface area of about 33 square
kilometers.