Solar energy production needs to grow rapidly to meet our country’s climate goals of 100% renewable energy by 2035. Scientists now predict that farmers and other landowners will lease more than 2 million acres of land in the U.S. for community and utility-scale photovoltaic solar projects by 2030. As the footprint of solar facilities expands nationwide, there is a pressing need to understand how individual project sites can exist in conjunction with the agricultural economy. Understanding the benefits in terms of both energy and food security can help alleviate some of the concerns from both the local communities and the farming community-at-large that have objected to solar projects in the past. This session will explore how agrivoltaics allow a given area to harvest the sun not only once, but twice — as fuel for crops and as a source of renewable energy. Topics covered will include: pollinator-friendly solar, solar grazing and the viability of traditional agricultural activities in conjunction with on-site solar and what resources are available.
