That's exactly the misconception folks have about desert right there, in that quoted "becoming". The idea is that deserts are worthless, containing no life. Probably because they contain nothing that humans value for their own comfort.
Yet deserts have lots of life, unique life, that because of the harsh environment is exquisitely tuned to the desert environment. This is the stuff that will be lost if the sunlight is gone, the heat goes away, the moisture balance is upset by so much shade. Plentiful shade and cool and wet are good for people; disaster for the desert ecosystem.
The 'thermal pollution' is, curiously, cooling instead of heating in this case. Light is turned to electricity instead of falling on the ground and becoming heat.
Yet deserts have lots of life, unique life, that because of the harsh environment is exquisitely tuned to the desert environment. This is the stuff that will be lost if the sunlight is gone, the heat goes away, the moisture balance is upset by so much shade. Plentiful shade and cool and wet are good for people; disaster for the desert ecosystem.
The 'thermal pollution' is, curiously, cooling instead of heating in this case. Light is turned to electricity instead of falling on the ground and becoming heat.