Agrovoltaics — Combining Clean Energy Production and Farming
As the quest for sources of renewable energy ramps up, more land is being devoted to hosting solar arrays. Here in the United States, where the average age of our farmers is over 57 years, precious farmland is being converted to solar generation. The reason is simple, making energy with solar panels is a lot easier than working the land to produce food. This dynamic presents a foreseeable problem. As the population grows and the need for stable food sources expands along with it, the conflict between land used for solar and land used for food production is reaching a crisis point.
Fortunately this is a situation that doesn’t require an either/or solution. Farmland can be used in conjunction with powerful solar arrays both to generate energy for the farm and the power grid, and to grow food.
Agrovoltaics
Agrovoltaics is where farming and energy generation meet. By strategically placing solar panels on farmland farmers can realize the best of both worlds: they can continue to grow high quality crops while also producing clean, renewable energy. In many cases the solar panels and the produce can work in a symbiosis that improves the overall quality of both elements.
