The dual use of arable land for electricity and food production is at the top of many farmers' lists of projects to tackle next. But they face many questions. Which plants thrive particularly well under the solar modules, which do not like the shade. How can the agriphotovoltaic system improve the water balance of the soil? How can the optimum be achieved between agricultural and solar yields?
Accompanying the market ramp-up
These questions are now being addressed by the Synagri-PV project: Synergetic integration of photovoltaics in agriculture as a contribution to a successful energy transition. Here, the project participants want to process and make available the results of the previous research installations, which they have accompanied scientifically, in order to accompany the market ramp-up of agriphotovoltaics.
Coordinated by the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems (ISE) and the Leibniz Centre for Agricultural Landscape Research (ZALF), nine partners from research, practice and industry are working together to develop a model for the use of agriphotovoltaics in Germany.
Advantages of agriphotovoltaics
The findings from the various pilot plants in Germany are being incorporated here - whether it is a high elevation of the modules, the vertical installation of bifacial panels, the use of trackers or the roofing of berry and stone fruit fields to protect them from the weather. In the meantime, systems with integrated irrigation are also ready for the market.
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"This makes agri-PV systems increasingly attractive for agriculture, because it provides a way to keep domestic agriculture competitive with the international market and to enable farmers to earn additional income," explains Max Trommsdorff, project manager at Fraunhofer ISE. "At the same time, we can drive the expansion of renewable energies, reduce pressure on scarce land and increase resilience to weather extremes and climate change in different farming systems."
Framework conditions unsuitable so far
Nevertheless, only a few projects have been realised so far. Those involved in the project see one of the crucial hurdles in the existing legal framework. These include inadequate incentive systems and comparatively complex approval processes. In addition, there are growing concerns about the acceptance of the local population and the attractiveness of the landscape.
Harnessing potential
Such economic, legal and social hurdles are to be compiled within the framework of the project. Subsequently, the participants want to work out proposals for solutions on how to reduce and overcome these hurdles. The focus should be on the optimal use of the potentials and the avoidance of wrong decisions in the application of agriphotovoltaics.
Avoiding wrong decisions
To this end, all relevant actors are to be involved as far as possible. The ongoing pilot plants will continue to be accompanied and additionally networked with each other. In addition, participation formats are to be developed in the project and the knowledge gained is to be evaluated, processed and made available to the general public and politicians.
To this end, the participants want to network as many relevant areas as possible from practice, technology, legislation and science, for example acceptance research and agronomy, and create a platform for the exchange of knowledge and experience in the field of dual land use. (su/mfo)
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