Agrivoltaics were developed in the 1980s, but their widespread adoption is now taking place as technology advances and costs decrease. Solar panels create shaded areas that reduce irrigation water evaporation and shield crops from heat waves. However, their benefits extend beyond using the land to produce electricity. They’re also effective in revitalizing rural areas with bees.
The decline in bees. Insects aren’t always pests. The worldwide extinction of species due to industrialized agriculture and the intensive use of pesticides threatens the planet’s biodiversity and human food supply.
In particular, insects that pollinate the plants humans and livestock eat, such as bee populations, are crucial for pollinating 75% of crops.
Minnesota’s solution. Minnesota has demonstrated that integrating solar panels into crop or livestock lands, known as agrivoltaic projects, can help reverse declining bee populations and increase insect and flower diversity significantly.
A five-year investigation by Argonne National Laboratory focused on two large solar installations in the southern part of the state. The results revealed promising results for these insects, providing benefits beyond just creating new habitats.
Improved productivity. The study concluded that agrivoltaics can maximize land use by combining agricultural production with energy generation. More importantly, this technique can also create new pesticide-free shaded insect habitats.
These shaded spaces under the solar panels support thriving populations of bees and other beneficial insects. This, in turn, improves agricultural productivity through increased pollination and natural pest control.
Benefits for adjacent fields. The Minnesota study also found that fields adjacent to agrivoltaic systems benefited from more bee visits. This led to increased pollination comparable to areas protected by the Department of Agriculture’s Conservation Reserve Program. This program pays farmers to remove production from some land to restore natural insect habitats.
While agrivoltaics isn’t intended to restore natural habitats, it could complement or partially replace direct land conversion for a purely economic incentive. This would allow farmers to continue farming the land while also generating income from energy generation.
The role of solar technology. The study’s results are very promising. However, according to the authors, the height and distance of solar panels can influence the effectiveness of insect habitats.
Agrivoltaics’ current success is due in part to advances in solar technology. This includes bifacial solar panels that capture radiation from both sides of a single module. It also refers to vertical or adjustable solar panels that can be tilted so they don’t obstruct farm machinery traffic.
As a result, these technologies make agricultural systems more efficient and compatible with modern agricultural practices.
Image | Bianca Ackermann
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