EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Consumption of the Earth’s fossil and nuclear energy reserves has grown rapidly in the latter half of the 20th century. This growth in consumption, coupled with rapidly increasing prices for these finite resources, has stimulated widespread interest in the exploitation of renewable sources of electric energy. One technology that has been proposed for development is the Satellite Power System (SPS). According to this concept, large satellites in geosynchronous orbit would collect solar energy and convert it to electric energy in space. When beamed to Earth in the form of microwaves, this energy would be collected at receiving antennae (rectennae) and rectified to DC power for distribution through the grid. Before committing the U.S. to such a large program, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) are jointly participating in an SPS Concept Development and Evaluation Program. This white paper focuses on the economic and demographic issues of industrial and population relocation around rectenna sites. The white paper is part of the larger preliminary evaluation of socioeconomic issues that is being carried out in FY 1978 to determine research directions for FY 1979 and beyond. To this end, the white paper documents the results of four preliminary assessment activities which are as follows: 1. Review existing literature dealing with industrial location, attendant population migration, and the role of electricity availability and pricing as factors influencing economic movements. 2. Identify economic and demographic issues relating to the deployment of SPS. 3. Consider the potential significance of these economic and demographic impacts in terms of expected public acceptance by appropriate interest groups. 4. Recommend additional study needs and the most advantageous approaches to these studies. Section 1 provides an overview of the SPS concept and introduces the concerns of this white paper. Sections 2 and 3 review the rather extensive literatures dealing with industrial location and the relationship between industrial moves and population migration. Except for some broad generalizations, there is no information about industrial relocation or population migration
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