Native Vegetation Performance under a Solar PV Array at the National Wind Technology Center

Beatty, Brenda; Macknick, Jordan; McCall, James; Braus, Genevieve; Buckner, David L.

doi:10.2172/1357887

Cited by 24 publications

(39 citation statements)

References 7 publications

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“…This study took place at a 1.1 MW solar PV facility in the National Renewable Energy Laboratory's National Wind Technology Center. This facility is located on the eastern slope of the Front Range in northern Jefferson County, Colorado, USA and has a mean annual precipitation of 374 mm (Beatty et al, 2017). When the site was constructed in 2009, the topsoil was largely removed and the site was graded, leveled to < 1% slope, and compacted (Beatty et al, 2017).…”

Section: Site Descriptionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This facility is located on the eastern slope of the Front Range in northern Jefferson County, Colorado, USA and has a mean annual precipitation of 374 mm (Beatty et al, 2017). When the site was constructed in 2009, the topsoil was largely removed and the site was graded, leveled to < 1% slope, and compacted (Beatty et al, 2017). Surficial soils at the site are paleosols derived from unsorted alluvial/colluvial deposits; soil-forming processes have extensively oxidized native iron and leached clay minerals (Beatty et al, 2017).…”

Section: Site Descriptionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…When the site was constructed in 2009, the topsoil was largely removed and the site was graded, leveled to < 1% slope, and compacted (Beatty et al, 2017). Surficial soils at the site are paleosols derived from unsorted alluvial/colluvial deposits; soil-forming processes have extensively oxidized native iron and leached clay minerals (Beatty et al, 2017). The area encompassing the site was historically a xeric tallgrass prairie dominated by big bluestem grass (Andropogon gerardii).…”

Section: Site Descriptionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The concept of co-locating solar PV and agriculture (i.e., "agrivoltaics") was first suggested by Goetzberger and Zastrow (1982). Since then, a number of modeling (Dupraz et al, 2011;Ravi et al, 2014Ravi et al, , 2016 and field studies (Marrou et al, 2013b,c;Beatty et al, 2017;Barron-Gafford et al, 2019) have investigated the technological, economic, and environmental feasibility of co-location approaches.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Effects of Revegetation on Soil Physical and Chemical Properties in Solar Photovoltaic Infrastructure

Choi

Cagle²,

Macknick

et al. 2020

Front. Environ. Sci.

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Solar photovoltaic (PV) technology is being deployed at an unprecedented rate. However, utility-scale solar energy development is land intensive and its largescale installation can have negative impacts on the environment. In particular, solar energy infrastructure can require extensive landscape modification that transforms soil ecological functions, thereby impacting hydrologic, vegetative, and carbon dynamics. However, reintroducing native vegetation to solar PV sites may be a means of restoring their soils. To this end, we investigated critical soil physical and chemical parameters at a revegetated photovoltaic array and an adjacent reference grassland in Colorado, United States. Seven years after revegetation, we found that carbon and nitrogen remained lower in the PV soil than in the reference soil and contained a greater fraction of coarse particles. We also found that the PV modules introduced heterogeneity in the soil moisture distribution, with precipitation accumulating along the lower edges of panels. The redistribution of soil moisture by panel arrays could potentially be used in concert with planting strategies to maximize plant growth or minimize soil erosion, and should be considered when evaluating the potential to co-locate vegetation with solar infrastructure.

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Section: Site Descriptionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Site Descriptionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Site Descriptionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Effects of Revegetation on Soil Physical and Chemical Properties in Solar Photovoltaic Infrastructure

Choi

Cagle²,

Macknick

et al. 2020

Front. Environ. Sci.

Self Cite

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show abstract

“…During site preparation, practices include conserving original vegetation (Macknick, Beatty, and Hill 2013) and installing arrays without grading (Beatty et al 2017). During operations, solar energy accommodates native vegetation under and around panels; modified height and spacing of PV panels to allow rough pasture, prairie, meadow and grassland habitats to flourish; pollinator-friendly habitat and planting of wild bird seed, nectar mixes or cover crops between rows; nest boxes and roosting, perching and hibernating structures within control buildings; wildlife-friendly hedges for fencing; and management for nutrient cycling and erosion control (BirdLife Europe 2011; Macknick, Beatty, and Hill 2013;Montag, Parker, and Clarkson 2016;Beatty et al 2017;Benage 2017;Hoffacker, Allen, and Hernandez 2017;Moore-O'Leary et al 2017). Solar energy may support restoration of wetland habitats in former agricultural and industrial areas through purification of groundwater (Pevzner 2015).…”

Section: Solarmentioning

confidence: 99%

Mutually-Beneficial Renewable Energy Systems

Burke

2018

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Microhabitats associated with solar energy development alter demography of two desert annuals

Tanner

Moore‐O’Leary

Parker

et al. 2021

Ecological Applications

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Political and economic initiatives intended to increase energy production while reducing carbon emissions are driving demand for solar energy. Consequently, desert regions are now targeted for development of large-scale photovoltaic solar energy facilities. Where vegetation communities are left intact or restored within facilities, ground-mounted infrastructure may have negative impacts on desert-adapted plants because it creates novel rainfall runoff and shade conditions. We used experimental solar arrays in the Mojave Desert to test how these altered conditions affect population dynamics for a closely related pair of native annual plants: rare Eriophyllum mohavense and common E. wallacei. We estimated aboveground demographic rates (seedling emergence, survivorship, and fecundity) over 7 yr and used seed bank survival rates from a concurrent study to build matrix models of population growth in three experimental microhabitats. In drier years, shade tended to reduce survival of the common species, but increase survival of the rare species. In a wet year, runoff from panels tended to increase seed output for both species. Population growth projections from microhabitatspecific matrix models showed stronger effects of microhabitat under wetter conditions, and relatively little effect under dry conditions (lack of rainfall was an overwhelming constraint). Performance patterns across microhabitats in the wettest year differed between rare and common species. Projected growth of E. mohavense was substantially reduced in shade, mediated by negative effects on aboveground demographic rates. Hence, the rare species were more susceptible to negative effects of panel infrastructure in wet years that are critical to seed bank replenishment. Our results suggest that altered shade and water runoff regimes associated with energy infrastructure will have differential effects on demographic transitions across annual species and drive population-level processes that determine local abundance, resilience, and persistence.

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Native Vegetation Performance under a Solar PV Array at the National Wind Technology Center

Cited by 24 publications

References 7 publications

Effects of Revegetation on Soil Physical and Chemical Properties in Solar Photovoltaic Infrastructure

Effects of Revegetation on Soil Physical and Chemical Properties in Solar Photovoltaic Infrastructure

Mutually-Beneficial Renewable Energy Systems

Microhabitats associated with solar energy development alter demography of two desert annuals

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