Effective usage of land to produce solar energy for our homes

With the global acceleration in solar power demand and sustainability requirements, solar farms have become more prevalent. These large-scale installations convert and generate a lot of electrical power from the sun’s rays. The question is how it is possible for effective usage of land to achieve this.

To achieve this, a great number of solar panels will have to cover many acres of land. Now, you might be wondering: what happens to all that space? With thousands of panels covering it, the land is now no longer available for other use. Don’t worry, though, there are many ways through which the tracts of land under solar panels can still be made productive.

Agrivoltaics means effective usage of land

What happens when you cross a solar farm with, well, an actual farm? You get agrivoltaics, also known as dual-use farming. Since farmlands are usually already large enough, many of them can actually double as solar farms. Farmers can add to their revenue by selling the power generation to the grid. Communities can also invest on their own farms to benefit from solar power. An ideal method of achieving effective usage of farming land.

This will of course depend on the type of crops being planted. The presence of solar arrays will limit the height of the plants. The plants will also be grown under the shade of the panels. While this means less sunlight gets to the plants, it allows the soil to retain water longer. This is a great option for farmers in locations where water resources are suboptimal.

Pollinator-friendly solar farms

Farming isn’t the only way to use solar farm land. Some have taken to adding native plants under the panels in order to encourage the proliferation and movement of pollinators. This all-important group includes bees and birds, primarily, but also other insects and some smaller mammals. This contributes to food security while helping augment agriculture and energy as well.

Effective usage of land as gazing grounds

The shade offered by bunches of solar panels is also great for letting poultry or livestock graze for longer stretches of time. The type of animal needs to be considered, though, because some animals can get injured or can damage the system. That’s why sheep and poultry are the common choices here because they exhibit generally calmer behavior.

Solar farms…in space!

We talk about how to utilize solar farm space more effectively. Yet, the most space-efficient solar farm might not be on the ground at all. Companies and governments are looking to put solar power plants in orbit—solar farms in space, so to speak.

Apart from not requiring large stretches of land, these solar farms come with other benefits, too. They’re directly receiving the sun’s rays out there, so there is no interruption of the power supply to them. In addition, factors such as changing seasons, time of day, or location, won’t affect them. Available land area also is no restriction.as well. That means they can stretch for thousands of miles as long as they’re at a safe distance from the earth.

Solar farms are the current means to generate large amounts of solar power for large-scale use. A bit of a downside is, each solar power farm requires a sizable chunk of land. Good thing there are many ways to still make effective usage of land when generating solar power This allows the solar farms to be more efficient while also adding more value for the people and the community

Get in touch with Renewable Energy Corporation, Maryland and DC’s premier renewable energy installation company. We’ll give you a no-obligation, completely free, run-down on all the advantages of installing solar on your home. We can even give you a fully accurate estimate of a good system without even having to visit your premises.

There’s no better time to invest in solar than now! Give us a call or contact us online.