As the quest for renewable energy sources continues, the integration of photovoltaics and agriculture emerges as a promising solution. This innovative approach addresses the challenge of maximizing land use efficiency while promoting sustainable practices.
What is agrivoltaics?
The struggle to make land available for activities other than those traditionally used has led to dilemmas that have required creative solutions. It is precisely here that the concept of agrivoltaics arises. This is the combination of the activity of agriculture with the production of photovoltaic energy as part of renewable energies.
In this way, agrivoltaics allows both activities to coexist in a space and, not only that they can be developed occupying the same space, but also that there is a mutual benefit in the use of both models.
Renewable energies such as photovoltaic energy, can provide the necessary energy to crops or animal farms to be able to have a stable source of energy and that the land on which the photovoltaic plants are located (trackers, solar panels…) can be, in turn, cultivated in order to make the most of it.
With agrivoltaics not only a necessary balance is achieved in these lands, but also solar panels can protect crops from inclement weather such as hail, frost, and drought damage.
Furthermore, strategically placed solar installations can mitigate excessive wind exposure and solar radiation, thereby promoting optimal growing conditions and facilitating water conservation in agriculture. In this way, a complete environmental integration is achieved, which is very beneficial for both activities.
Beginnings of Agrivoltaics
Understanding the origins of agrivoltaics is crucial to grasp the evolution of this environmental integration. Historically, both agriculture and photovoltaic plants encountered challenges in land cultivation, alongside the imperative to allocate significant land areas for photovoltaic energy production. Consequently, solutions were sought to enable the coexistence of these activities, leading to the emergence of agrivoltaics.
Germany serves as the cradle of this concept, being among the first regions to confront the spatial constraints hindering the development of both agriculture and photovoltaics. Around 2017, the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems ISE, via its Chilean office, conducted pivotal research highlighting the benefits of integrating solar energy with agriculture. This was demonstrated by installing three photovoltaic plants amidst agricultural crops in the metropolitan region of Santiago de Chile.
The primary objective of this demonstration was to promote the efficient utilization of land, stabilize energy supply, integrate smart technologies, and reduce the carbon footprint of agricultural products. As a result, tangible benefits emerged across three key areas. Firstly, the shading provided by solar panels led to enhanced agricultural yields, particularly benefiting crops vulnerable to stress in open environments.
Furthermore, the shaded areas facilitated environmental cooling by crops, thereby enhancing the efficiency of photovoltaic panels, especially during warmer periods. This synergy underscores the multifaceted advantages agrivoltaics offers, making it a compelling solution for sustainable land use and energy production.
Opportunities in Agriculture and the Energy Transition
These experiments, accompanied by further research, have validated the idea that complementing these two activities would provide significant benefits and opportunities for environmental integration and energy transition.
In the United States, the University of Arizona has also conducted studies on the consequences of combining photovoltaics with agriculture. Their research on improving energy efficiency has shown that in areas with solar panels, there is less water evaporation and reduced plant stress levels. This is because it is less hot in summer and less cold in winter.
What are the advantages?
It has been perfectly demonstrated that agriculture can provide many important advantages for achieving greater energy efficiency. In fact, Europe is promoting this dual use of land to benefit both activities through the European Green Deal, which establishes measures to achieve environmental integration. The main advantages of agrivoltaics are described next:
1. A Good Combination for Some Environments: Research has shown that some land is more likely to benefit from the combination of agriculture and photovoltaic panels. Croplands, grasslands, and wetlands are the most favorable environments for this combination to occur. Not only can the panels greatly benefit crops in these areas, but in many cases, these crops are best suited for better utilization of these PV panels.
2. Regulates Temperature: A great advantage of this type of combination is that the photovoltaic panels can regulate the temperature of the crops installed underneath. This way, during periods of high heat in summer, the crops under the panels are kept at a lower temperature, and in times of very cold temperatures in winter, these crops end up having a higher temperature.
3. Less Stress for Crops: Stressful situations occur in some crops when they are exposed in the open for long periods. This can be reduced or mitigated by photovoltaic installations. Some of the crops that can be in this situation are beans, tomatoes, peppers, or green leafy plants such as lettuce, chard, or kale. The panels can reduce direct sunlight falling on the plants by up to 75%, leading to better growth.
4. Better Performance of Solar Panels: Another great advantage of this union between agriculture and photovoltaic energy is that the photovoltaic panels encounter better conditions for energy production thanks to the crops. Some of the aspects that influence this improvement in performance are high levels of sunshine, mild winds, moderate temperatures, and low humidity conditions. This combination makes these panels work much better in these crop areas, and more energy can be obtained with less effort and less panel surface.
5. Synergies Between Photovoltaics and Agriculture: As can be seen, the combination of photovoltaic energy and agriculture allows many synergies to be generated between both activities. These synergies undoubtedly affect crops and other environmental surroundings and other animals in the area. One of the most important synergies that can be found in the development of sustainable energy from photovoltaic panels and crops would affect some insects such as bees.
The presence of pollinating bees in these crops seems that it could be a great advantage for these ecosystems. In fact, these plants could have an ecosystem that would favor the development of bee communities, thus also contributing to these bees being able to sustain themselves and generate larger colonies. Planting crops that attract these pollinators could be an opportunity to achieve a greater balance in these ecosystems and further enhance the synergies that crops and panels could generate in these agricultural lands.
Undoubtedly, the synergies and opportunities that agrivoltaics can bring to the lands of many countries or regions are a way to go. It is not only a question of agreement between those responsible for farms and those responsible for the production of renewable energies but also the need for adequate regulation.
One of the aspects that is highlighted at the European level and in many countries is precisely that there is still no clear regulation that can control these activities and that could lead to new ways of working and promoting the enhancement of these synergies. It can be concluded that this new activity, which has been developing for some time now, is still in its initial stages and requires a higher level of development to achieve the expected environmental impact resulting from the combination of two activities that have a common objective: to protect the environment and benefit agricultural development and the production of renewable energies. An activity that must continue to be promoted and that requires greater regulation and attention.
Suntrack® Smart Tracker Controller For Agrivoltaics
We have launched a specific solution to meet new Agrivoltaic standards- Suntrack® Green – Agritracker Control Unit, a solution to the challenges faced by tracker controllers used for regular tracking systems, this is especially challenging when trackers reach heights above 4 meters.
Suntrack® Agritracker Controller takes into account the maximization of crop performance and safety and its algorithms and functionalities are adapted for that purpose.
