A Washington State University (WSU) report identifies vast potential for agrivoltaics across the state’s farmlands, estimating between 8.7 and 17.4 GW of possible solar power generation on 87,000 acres of agricultural land that are within a mile of an electrical substation.
Theoretical potential far exceeds this ‘reasonable’ assumption, as the report writers identified over 204,000 acres of land in Washington hypothetically amenable to agrivoltaics. If all of it were used, it could translate into 20.5 GW to 41.0 GW of solar energy. A more ambitious scenario considers agrivoltaics development within a mile of transmission lines rather than substations, identifying over 350,000 acres or 35 GW to 70 GW of solar power.
Nevertheless, the reasonable assumption of this state-funded report is enough to suggest that dual use of land for farming and solar could play a major role in meeting Washington’s mandated clean-energy goals, as it targets generating 20 GW of solar power. It can achieve this without diverting land from food production to generate clean electricity.
Researchers say agrivoltaics can boost farm productivity, provide shade and cooling for crops and animals, and support rural economies by cutting irrigation costs and replacing the need for trellises and seasonal shade cloth installation.
Apples, berries, and other perennial fruiting crops were found to be particularly well-suited for agrivoltaics integration, with roughly half of the identified acreage comprising orchards in central and eastern Washington.
Prepared based on a review of existing scientific literature, mapping agricultural land, and surveys of farmers, the WSU report also notes that dairy farms could benefit from the dual-space use approach. The team also studied agrivoltaic installations in other parts of the world, including Japan and Europe.
“One thing we learned from the survey was farmers deeply, deeply trust WSU and they trust the conservation commission and conservation districts here in Washington. We have good science suggesting this should work well, but actually seeing it happen on the ground would be that enabling condition to get them going,” shared Washington’s Director of Science for The Nature Conservancy and Lead Author of the report, Max Lambert.
WSU is now attempting to establish a pilot project at the university’s Sunrise Research Orchard near Wenatchee, led by the Director of WSU’s Center for Sustaining Agriculture & Natural Resources and Assistant Director for WSU’s Institute for Northwest Energy Futures, Chad Kruger, who is also the co-author of the report.
The team adds that while further study is required and significant obstacles exist, including high upfront costs, the study shows that there is reason for ‘cautious optimism’ in focusing on agrivoltaics in Washington.
The complete research, titled ‘Low Hanging Fruit for Washington’s Energy Future? Agrivoltaic Feasibility for Agricultural and Energy Resilience in the Evergreen State’, is available for free on American Farmland Trust’s website. The Trust, along with the University of California, Santa Barbara, contributed to the report.
Previously, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) released the success factors for agrivoltaics in the US (see NREL Reports Highlight Potential For Agrivoltaics In US).
