Global energy demand is increasing as greenhouse gas driven climate change progresses, making renewable energy sources critical to future sustainable power provision. Land-based wind and solar electricity generation technologies are rapidly expanding, yet our understanding of their operational effects on biological carbon cycling in hosting ecosystems is limited. Wind turbines and photovoltaic panels can significantly change local ground-level climate by a magnitude that could affect the fundamental plant–soil processes that govern carbon dynamics. We believe that understanding the possible effects of changes in ground-level microclimates on these phenomena is crucial to reducing uncertainty of the true renewable energy carbon cost and to maximize beneficial effects. In this Opinions article, we examine the potential for the microclimatic effects of these land-based renewable energy sources to alter plant–soil carbon cycling, hypothesize likely effects and identify critical knowledge gaps for future carbon research. Land use change for land-based renewables (LBR) is global, widespread and predicted to increase. Understanding of microclimatic effects is growing, but currently incomplete, and subsequent effects on plant–soil C cycling, greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and soil C stocks are unknown. We urge the scientific community to embrace this research area and work across disciplines, including plant–soil ecology, terrestrial biogeochemistry and atmospheric science, to ensure we are on the path to truly sustainable energy provision.
Tag Archive for: AgriSolar
Greenbacker Capital Invests in Solar Development
Greenbacker Capital has announced that it will be investing in a California-based solar developer, Noria Energy, according to a recent report. The investment will assist Noria in scaling solar projects that are both ground-mounted and floating solar arrays, known as floatovoltaics. Noria hosts solar operations in both Latin America and the United States.
Solar Powered Canals to be Tested in California
Project Nexus was recently approved by California’s Turlock Irrigation District to move forward with constructing the nation’s first solar panels over water canals. This project will assist California in reaching the state’s decarbonization goals by 2030. The project is based on research conducted by a University of California graduate student and commissioned by the Sierra Nevada Research Institute, UC Water, and Solar Aquagrid, according to a recent UC Merced article.
Solar-Powered Oyster Barge Sets Sail in Chesapeake Bay
A solar-powered oyster barge is now operating in Chesapeake Bay to assist in the restoration of Chesapeake Bay’s aquaculture. The barge will grow oysters that will be used for filtering water in other areas of the bay. The new barge features 12 solar panels that generate roughly 24 kilowatt-hours of energy each day, according to this report. Solar Oysters, the partnership between Maritime Applied Physics Corporation (MAPS) and the Ecologix Group, Inc. that made the solar barge possible, plans to develop more barges in the future that will grow oysters fit for consumption.
Collocating solar photovoltaic (PV) technology with agriculture is a promising approach towards dual land productivity that could locally fulfil growing food and energy demands particularly in rural areas. This ’agrivoltaic’ (AV) solution can be highly suitable for hot and arid climates where an optimized solar panel coverage could prevent excessive thermal stress during harsh weather thereby increasing the crop yield and lowering the water budget. One of the concerns with using standard fixed tilt solar array structure that faces north/south (N/S) direction for AV farming is the spatial heterogeneity in the daily sunlight distribution for crops and soil water contents, both of which could affect crop yield. Dynamic tilt control through a tracking system can eliminate this problem but could increase the system cost and complexity. Here, we investigate east/west (E/W) faced vertical bifacial panel structure for AV farming and show that this could provide a much better spatial homogeneity for daily sunlight distribution relative to the fixed tilt N/S faced PV structure implying a better suitability for monoculture cropping.
This report discusses the goal of agrisolar systems, which would generate electricity from raised solar panels and allow crop cultivation under the solar panels, and their development. Details of the report include the effect of raised solar panels and their effect on shading, which affects factors of the crops development. This information can be used to potentially optimize the design of agrisolar operations to most effectively benefit the crops included in the agrisolar operation.
This study examines a variety of percentages of the total area covered with shade produced by photovoltaic modules on rooftop lettuce crops. The results of the study suggest that in areas of high radiation and temperature(s), it is possible to use the same area on rooftops to produce photovoltaic energy and effectively cultivate plant species that demand little sunlight, such as lettuce. These conclusions mean that rooftop agrisolar is effective when the strategies in this study are taken into consideration.
Implications for vegetation growth when large opaque objects such as solar collectors are placed between the sun and ground-level vegetation across large portions of earth surface have received little attention to date. The present study seeks to address this void, advancing the state of knowledge of how constructed PV arrays affect ground-level environments, and to what degree plant cover, having acceptable characteristics within engineering constraints, can be re-established and thrive.
Eden Renewables, a New York solar developer, is taking action to support local agriculture by developing eight new pollinator-friendly solar farms in Schodack, Schaghticoke, Glen, and Claverack. Construction is expected to be completed around July 2022.
The solar farms will be a huge benefit to pollinators. More than 35 million native grasses and wildflowers, all pollinator-friendly, will be used as ground cover for each 35-acre site. This amounts to a total of 280 acres being used for biodiversity and ecological enhancement, according to a Eden Renewables press release.
“Eden’s community solar farms are a great example of how land can be used for multiple purposes – generating clean power, providing wildlife habitats, pollinator services, and producing food with sheep grazing and beehives making honey. Soon there should be butterflies fluttering, birds singing and bees buzzing around newly planted photovoltaic panels, helping local people to save money on their energy bills,” said Giovanni Maruca, Eden’s Chief Development Officer, according to Eden Renewables.
Each of the solar farms will generate 7.5 MW, enough energy to power around 1,225 homes. In total, the eight farms will generate 60 MW of clean energy, powering some 9,800 households.
Eden Renewables develops solar energy and storage projects in the United States, the UK, Africa, with a focus on continuing agricultural use, biodiversity, ecological enhancement, and community and educational benefits.
Learn more about this project and Eden Renewables here.
Agrisolar is a rapidly expanding sector with incredible potential. It brings together two major sectors of our society and economy: agriculture and energy. The goal of this guide is to draw on past experiences, to take stock of “what works” and “what doesn’t,” in order to advise local and international actors on successfully developing Agrisolar. This first edition of the SolarPower Europe Agrisolar Best Practices Guidelines takes a step in joining forces with agricultural stakeholders to better understand how the solar and agricultural sector can work more closely together, enhancing synergies to advance the energy and climate transition. Every Agrisolar project is unique as it must be adapted to the local agronomical, environmental, and socioeconomic conditions of the project site, and adapted to the needs of farmers and other relevant stakeholders. The most important element to ensure that Agrisolar projects perform effectively as agricultural and photovoltaic projects is to begin by clearly defining a Sustainable Agriculture Concept. Defining a Sustainable Agriculture Concept means assessing how to improve the sustainability of the agricultural practices carried out on site, assessing whether the project can provide local ecosystem services, assessing how it can be best integrated within the local social and economic setting, all while generating clean electricity. Following best practices throughout all 19 areas identified in these guidelines will ensure Agrisolar projects deliver tangible benefits, as planned in the Sustainable Agriculture Concept.
This study aims to analyze a PV power plant type rainwater harvesting system (PVPPRWHS) in a 600 kW grid-connected solar photovoltaic (PV) power plant. An experimental rainwater harvest was carried out in only 128 m2 of the Altınoluk Solar Power Plant, which has a surface area of 4320 m2. This study showed that the potential for collecting rainwater from a small part of the PV plant is approximately 118 m3 per year and that the harvesting system will reach 1646 m3/year when applied to the whole plant. The harvested rainwater is used for panel cleaning and agriculture to combat climate change and drought.
Evaluating the albedo impact on bifacial PV systems based on case studies in Denver, USA and Västerås, Sweden. This study aims to develop a simulation and optimization tool for bifacial photovoltaic (PV) modules based on the open-source code OptiCE and evaluate dynamic and static albedo impact on a bifacial PV system. Further, a review of the market price development of bifacial PVs’ and an optimization to maximize energy output was conducted.
THE LATEST
AgriSolar News Roundup: Agrisolar in Nova Scotia, Albania Agrisolar Law, World Soil Day December 11, 2024 - 12:48 pm
Case Study: Fiddlehead FarmsNovember 21, 2024 - 8:24 am