A First Investigation of Agriculture Sector Perspectives on the Opportunities and Barriers for Agrivoltaics

Abstract

Agrivoltaic systems are a strategic and innovative approach to combine solar photovoltaic (PV)-based renewable energy generation with agricultural production. Recognizing the fundamental importance of farmer adoption in the successful diffusion of the agrivoltaic innovation, this study investigates agriculture sector experts’ perceptions on the opportunities and barriers to dual land-use systems. Using in-depth, semistructured interviews, this study conducts a first study to identify challenges to farmer adoption of agrivoltaics and address them by responding to societal concerns. Results indicate that participants see potential benefits for themselves in combined solar and agriculture technology. The identified barriers to adoption of agrivoltaics, however, include: (i) desired certainty of long-term land productivity, (ii) market potential, (iii) just compensation and (iv) a need for predesigned system flexibility to accommodate different scales, types of operations, and changing farming practices. The identified concerns in this study can be used to refine the technology to increase adoption among farmers and to translate the potential of agrivoltaics to address the competition for land between solar PV and agriculture into changes in solar siting, farming practice, and land-use decision-making.

Do agrivoltaics improve public support for solar? A survey on perceptions, preferences, and priorities

“…Given that agrivoltaics are a relatively nascent form of solar development, there is a dearth of social science research dedicated to investigating the social acceptability and perceptions of the technology. Existing research concerned with the social dimensions of agrivoltaic development suggests that community acceptance, farmer adoption, and local regulatory environments will play a crucial role in the broader realization of these systems (Ketzer et al, 2019;Pascaris, 2021;Pascaris et al, 2020Pascaris et al, , 2021bLi et al, 2021). Based on previous theoretical and empirical studies related to social acceptance of renewable energy (RE) (e.g., Walker, 1995;van der Horst, 2007;Ansolabehere & Konisky, 2009;Sovacool, 2009;Batel et al, 2013;Fast, 2013), it is anticipated that successful deployment of agrivoltaics will necessitate sensitivity to and accommodation of public perceptions, especially rural perceptions, related to solar infrastructure on farmland.…”

“…Further, proactively avoiding threat to local interests and priorities was identified as extremely important among respondents when planning for agrivoltaic projects; this highlights the importance of including the public in the planning process to meaningfully incorporate existing agricultural practices in system design and to ensure that the project represents the interests and identity of the host community. Addressing concerns about unfair distribution of project benefits could include the establishment of contracts between solar developers and farmers that are accessible to the public and outline costs and compensation for both parties (Pascaris et al, 2020).…”

“…By designing solar system standards, local governments can influence agrivoltaic development practice in a way that ensures these systems are located on existing farmland or private property and do not compromise agricultural productivity, therefore providing direct economic benefit to farmers. Minimizing development impacts on long term land productivity and providing compensation to farmers will be critical in supporting the deployment of agrivoltaic systems (Pascaris et al, 2020), which indicates the need to incorporate these considerations in the design of agrivoltaic projects and policies. Local regulations that are permissive of solar set the initial foundation for communities to further consider the specifics of what type, what scale, and where projects can be developed.…”

“…Although agrivoltaics have been amply demonstrated as a viable alternative to conventional ground-mounted solar development practice (Weselek et al, 2019), diffusion of the innovation may be suppressed by community opposition towards local energy development proposals, as previous research on renewable energy technology suggests (Bell et al, 2005(Bell et al, , 2013van der Horst, 2007;Evans et al, 2011;Boyd & Paveglio, 2015;Larson & Krannich, 2016). Given the proven economic, technical, and environmental advantages provided by agrivoltaic systems, increased proliferation is anticipated, which necessitates connecting this technology with the interests of agricultural communities and designing locally appropriate systems that minimize land use conflict (Pascaris et al, 2020;. Identifying the factors of agrivoltaic development that can minimize siting conflict and address agricultural communities' concerns will therefore be critical in promoting the acceptance of this technology.…”

Effects on Crop Development, Yields and Chemical Composition of Celeriac (Apium graveolens L. var. rapaceum) Cultivated Underneath an Agrivoltaic System

“…As a recent study showed, long term land productivity and market certainty are often seen as the main arguments favoring the implementation of AV from farmers' perspective [15]. This emphasizes the need for agricultural field trials.…”