As solar farms are increasingly located on farmland, agrivoltaics offers a new pathway of potentially increasing farm output by combining agriculture with solar panels. The benefits could help overcome objections to using agricultural land for solar energy.

What is Agrivoltaics?

Agrivoltaics is a system where solar panels are placed on farmland in a way that farming can continue. There are three main types of systems, the USDA explained: elevated, inter-row, and a combination of the two. Elevated systems place solar panels above vegetation, usually at least 6 feet, so they can protect vegetation from extreme weather such as heavy rains or drought and also reduce sun exposure. In inter-row systems, vegetation is grown between rows of solar panels rather than beneath them. Crops usually have more access to direct sunlight than in elevated systems, and rows of panels can be spaced out widely enough to allow tractors to cultivate vegetation in between.

Dual use solar involving agrivoltaics is already utilized in more than 1 gigawatt of U.S. PV installations, according to the National Renewable Energy Laboratory. The American Farmland Trust projects that 83 percent of new solar capacity will be sited on farmland and ranchland, with nearly half of that on the most productive land, unless current policies change.

Research Shows Agrivoltaics can Increase Yield

While it might seem like putting solar panels on agricultural land would decrease farmland and crop yields, the opposite can be true when it is done correctly. A variety of studies have shown that agrivoltaics can actually increase crop yields while producing renewable energy. There are several ways solar panels can be installed to complement agricultural activities, Georgia Tech’s Yang You explained. You said fixed vertical or tilted panels provide partial shading for crops and vegetables, protecting them from excessive sunlight and offering shelter for livestock. Panels mounted on a tracking system can follow the sun throughout the day, optimizing energy capture while still allowing enough light for crops below. Elevated panels, standing as tall as 10 feet, allow tractors to pass underneath. Additionally, panels can be integrated into greenhouse structures (NREL).

Studies have shown that agrivoltaics provides a way to balance land use while contributing to farming practices, You added. One study showed that crops such as blueberries can benefit from the partial shade provided by solar panels. Moreover, agrivoltaics enables
farmers to create dual revenue streams from their land.

The Aspen Global Change Institute similarly noted that agrivoltaic configurations such as combining PV with croplands, pastures or pollinator habitats may contribute to achieving sustainable energy and food goals simultaneously. One study in Arizona comparing the food, energy, and water implications of an agrivoltaic system to a traditional agriculture system found that fruit production doubled in the agrivoltaic system and there were marginal improvements to
electricity production due to the cooling effect of plant transpiration on the solar panels. Another study found that although shady plots with solar panels generated less herbage than the sunnier open pastures, lambs in both traditional and agrivoltaic plots gained weight at nearly the same rate.

Research and Pilots are Already Underway in Washington

Private companies and public universities in Washington already have agrivoltaic operations or studies underway. Renewable energy developer Avangrid, for instance, said it began operating the “largest ‘solar grazing’ operation” in the Pacific Northwest in 2023. It partnered with a fifth-generation sheep rancher to include livestock in the 150MW Lund Hill solar project in Klickitat County.

Grazing sheep naturally cuts back vegetation and weeds growing around solar modules, which reduces wildfire risk, the potential damage that vehicles can cause and the need for landscaping maintenance.

In the public sector, Washington State University received a $2.4 million grant from the Washington State Department of Commerce to demonstrate the economic and agricultural feasibility of using solar panels in apple production to provide controlled shading for trees, increase the yield of harvestable fruit and offset agricultural electricity usage (Capital Press). Agrivoltaics could also power irrigation pumps, frost-inhibiting wind machines, automated robotics and electric
tractors.

It's Not All Smooth Sailing

While agrivoltaics is moving ahead in many places, it has stalled in others. Georgia Tech’s Yang You said there is skepticism in rural communities, which have
questions about land value, environmental impacts and the future of properties once solar installations are decommissioned. A study by USA Today shows that more than 3.5 percent of counties nationwide limit or block the development of utility-scale solar projects.

Here in Washington, Yakima County commissioners first approved an initial six-month moratorium on new, moderate- to large-scale solar facilities in July 2022. Commissioners have continued to extend the moratorium since then.

The Washington Legislature Supports Agrivoltaics

Actions by the Washington state legislature show that it supports agrivoltaics. This year it approved Bill 5445, which aims to enhance the development of distributed energy. It focused on promoting local energy projects such as small-scale wind and solar installations on previously developed lands, agricultural lands, and landfills. It provides a categorical exemption from certain regulatory requirements for small solar installations on disturbed lands, which
streamlines the approval process. The bill also introduces the term "agrivoltaic facility", clarifying that these facilities do not constitute a reclassification or withdrawal from agricultural land. King5 said the bill also exempts farmers from additional taxation when they use land for agriculture
and solar energy generation. Governor Ferguson signed the bill on May 3 rd .

Earlier, in 2024, the Department of Commerce provided $37 million in funding for 46 solar power projects, including a number in agrivoltaics. The Department gave $1 million to Cloudbreak Energy Washington in Mt. Vernon, for example, for a project that combines commercial solar energy with sheep grazing. It gave $1 million to Fasahov Solar in Sunnyside for a 2 MW solar project paired with multiple agrivoltaic practices including native pollinator
plants, sheep grazing, and beehives. It gave $2,524,204 to Sagecliffe Resort and Spa in Quincy to install a 1 MW dual use solar project at a vineyard to provide shade and act as a windbreak for commercial beehives.

While agricultural organizations have been concerned about solar farms replacing farmland, agrivoltaics seems to provide a win-win solution that helps farmers and creates more renewable energy.