This paper addresses the need for a review that provides a clear explanation of agrivoltaics, including the factors that impact agricultural and energy production in agrivoltaic systems, types of panel configurations and technologies to optimize these systems, and a synthesis of modelling studies which have already been conducted in this area.
This research looks at the decision factors informing private landowners’ decisions to host solar sites on their land through a case study in California. Applying land system science and agricultural decision-making theory, we find that landowner decisions to host utility scale solar sites are based on profit-maximization, water availability, visual and ecological landscape values, and agricultural land preservation ethic.
This paper addresses the environmental effects of solar panels on an unirrigated pasture that often experiences water stress. Changes to the microclimatology, soil moisture, water usage, and biomass productivity due to the presence of solar panels were quantified.
In this webinar, Heidi Kolbeck-Urlacher from the the Center for Rural Affairs, Alexis Pascaris from Agrisolar Consulting, and Allison Jackson from the Colorado Agrivoltaic Learning Center discuss policy approaches for dual-use and agrisolar practices.
This study was conducted to compare lamb growth and pasture production from solar pastures in agrivoltaic systems and traditional open pastures over two years in Oregon. Over the entire period, solar pastures produced 38% lower herbage than open pastures due to low pasture density in fully shaded areas under solar panels. The results from this grazing study indicate that lower herbage mass available in solar pastures was offset by higher forage quality, resulting in similar spring lamb production to open pastures.
This article presents a comparison of changes in vine growth and fruit characteristics due to the installation of solar panels in the vineyard. Researchers found that the development of vines and fruits was not significantly different, and that the post-harvest fruit showed no difference in granules, fruit discharge, sugar content, or pericarp color.
This guide aims to help farmland owners understand solar energy development and the solar energy leasing process. While the guide includes specific information for Ohio, much of the information in the guide is relevant for farmland owners in any state. Authors present initial considerations for farmers, as well as an explanation of common legal documents and terms in solar leasing. The final chapter of the guide organizes solar leasing issues into a checklist tool that reviews questions to ask and actions to take when thinking about solar energy development on the farm.
In this study, researchers outline practical considerations for grazing land adaptations with an eye towards our changing climate. Flexibility and learning under uncertainty are the overall themes, with an emphasis on collaborative research between researchers and land managers.
Understanding circularity and landscape experience in agrivoltaics contributes to enabling agriculture transitions and increasing public acceptance. This study examines these topics in built agrivoltaic projects reported in scientific literature, and provides recommendations for researchers, farmers, and policy makers to pay more attention to landscape experience while constructing agrivoltaic sites.
This study presents a strategy for scheduling water delivery by irrigation pumps, synchronizing energy production in solar photovoltaic modules and minimizing the installation size. An optimization algorithm is proposed, which changes the energy required by pumping devices and adjusts them to the available solar energy supply, minimizing the number of panels required. The results of the study provide a tool for managers and decision-makers when evaluating the possibility of converting their irrigation network into a stand-alone system supplied by photovoltaic panels.
