In today's article from the "Lawyer on the Farm" series, we'll present a revolutionary solution that involves using the same land for agricultural production and electricity generation. Currently, in Poland, to install photovoltaic panels on land, the land must be excluded from agricultural production. Therefore, agrovoltaics is a new technology that is extremely beneficial for farmers, as it not only generates additional income from land still used for agricultural purposes but also contributes to the development of renewable energy sources and minimizes the carbon footprint.
First, it's important to explain what this technology involves. The semi-transparent photovoltaic panels are mounted on the ground differently than traditional methods, at a height of at least 5 meters, allowing the land to be used for agricultural purposes. This allows farmers to produce energy for resale, as well as cultivate the land and generate income from it.
Why do we believe this is the future of modern agriculture? Agrivoltaics enables extensive land use and the generation of income from multiple sources, while fully respecting the environment. Furthermore, this technology allows for the installation of photovoltaic panels not only on poor-quality soils, and therefore provides an excellent solution to the enormous problem of the gradual decline in land that meets current requirements for photovoltaic installations.
Moreover, agrovoltaics are an ideal response to increasingly frequent droughts. Thanks to them, farmers can increase yields of crops that are particularly heat-intolerant. We estimate that crops grown with photovoltaic panels above them require up to 20% less water. This technology acts as a kind of roof for plants. It's also important to emphasize that agrovoltaics will not retain precipitation, which is crucial for proper plant development. Regarding precipitation, it's crucial that agrovoltaics protect plants from sudden, intense rainfall, which adversely affects subsequent yields.
We emphasize that agrivoltaics are widely used by farmers in countries such as Spain, the Netherlands, and Germany. In these countries, farmers can count on government support, which is extremely important and significantly facilitates the implementation of changes. Experience from our western neighbors indicates that photovoltaic modules are mounted on special structures above cultivated plants, helping to protect them from unfavorable weather conditions, such as excessive heat or heavy rain. Such structures are most often used over soft fruit crops, such as blueberries, raspberries, grapevines, and strawberries, as well as in orchards. Interestingly, farmers in Kosovo demonstrated that this type of installation can also be used for animal husbandry.
Without a doubt, agrivoltaics are the future and an opportunity for Polish agriculture. Given the lack of stable agricultural prices, agrivoltaics could become a very beneficial solution, providing additional and stable income from the same land.
However, we must highlight the biggest problem related to agrivoltaics, which, in our opinion, lies in Polish regulations – which in no way regulate this matter. We point out that, according to Polish regulations, farmers can only install photovoltaic panels on low-quality land, and, moreover, such land cannot be used for agricultural production. Therefore, we appeal for a change in the regulations on this matter, which is clearly in the interest of Polish agriculture.
In the next articles, to which we invite you now, we will continue the topic of Renewable Energy Sources.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice.
Legal status as of August 22, 2024
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