California water district plans up to 21 GW of solar on land fallowed due to water shortages
A water district serving the western San Joaquin Valley has established a long-term blueprint for developing solar, storage and transmission on lands that “can no longer sustain irrigated agriculture.”
New York program to deploy solar on previously developed sites yields 12 MW in five years
New York State’s Build-Ready program, designed to clear hurdles to solar or storage deployment on previously developed sites, has faced challenges well beyond the expiration of tax credits under the OBBBA tax and spending law, according to a program review.
New Jersey offers incentives for up to 65 MW of agrivoltaics projects
The Rutgers University rural agrivoltaics program has advised New Jersey regulators on the design of a pilot agrivoltaics program. Projects receiving support will need to track data on agricultural production on fields with and without solar installations.
Agrivoltaics as a method for critical ecosystem preservation: Introducing ecovoltaics
Recognizing the challenge of solar expansion competing with valuable agricultural land, Sandbox Solar and Colorado State University are collaborating to research how thoughtful utility-scale solar design, specifically utilizing the ecovoltaics strategy, can simultaneously produce clean energy and enhance American grassland ecosystems.
New framework quantifies solar land use with unprecedented detail
The research reached a surprising conclusion that dual-axis solar tracker systems are more land-intensive per kW than single-axis trackers or fixed-tilt systems. The study’s data-driven approach highlights key efficiency metrics and siting opportunities, including agrivoltaics and brownfield development, for sustainable solar expansion.
Power producers and portfolio owners face the facts of life with PV repowering
REC Solar’s Andy Sofranko says planning and engineering can prevent a plant’s mid-life crisis.
California study finds electrification can put downward pressure on electric rates
Wide adoption of electric vehicles that can displace fossil fuel combustion with renewable power can also lower rates by about 3 cents per kWh, if the needed distribution grid upgrades are built efficiently and with cost constraints, a study found.
The role of robotics in boosting U.S. solar recycling capacity
Solar recycler OnePlanet will draw on vision-guided robots and automation to scale their River City facility and recover more, purer valuable materials from spent panels.
Agrivoltaics for sorghum and soybeans
Researchers at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign found that shading from agrivoltaic systems reduces grain numbers in both sorghum and soybean, but sorghum can partially compensate by increasing grain weight while soybean cannot. The study shows that sorghum and soybean respond differently due to their physiology, offering guidance for crop selection and management to minimize yield penalties in agrivoltaics.
Solar sidewalks slash urban emissions 98%, study finds
A Concordia model reveals how photovoltaic pavements can electrify urban food delivery and mobility, slashing emissions by 98% while freeing rooftops for agriculture.
