Agrivoltaics Canada

⏰ Not long to go until our September Community Exchange!

This month, we’re taking a closer look at what it will actually take to fast-track agrivoltaics across Canada. 🌾☀️

Join Omri Haiven from Simon Fraser University for a discussion on the barriers currently holding back agrivoltaics adoption and the policies, incentives and partnerships that could help overcome them.

We’ll also explore the important role that farming and First Nation communities could play in leading agrivoltaics adoption and how stronger relationships between key stakeholders could help move the sector forward.

📅 September 25, 2026
⏰ 12:00–1:00 PM EST
💻 Online

🎟️ Register via the QR code or at cf58c426-d5f6-4429-8dc8-b0525aacc8f6@514fce24-1e2b-4643-a705-199fa45d5846" rel="ugc" target="_blank">https://events.teams.microsoft.com/event/cf58c426-d5f6-4429-8dc8-b0525aacc8f6@514fce24-1e2b-4643-a705-199fa45d5846

🌾☀️ What makes farmers interested in agrivoltaics?

A study of fruit and vegetable growers in California and North Carolina found that the answer goes well beyond simply having a positive view of solar.

💰 76% said upfront cost was a major factor in considering AV
📈 Income diversification and reduced financial risk were linked with greater interest
💧 Farmers focused on reducing water use were also more interested in AV
🚜 44% of surveyed farmers expressed interest in adopting agrivoltaics, while only 17% were uninterested

The findings highlight an important point for future AV development. Farm economics, water priorities and the realities of agricultural operations all matter when designing projects farmers will actually want to adopt.

Source: https://doi.org/10.1088/2976-601X/ad5449

🌱☀️ Agrivoltaics has the potential to strengthen food and energy security while helping communities respond to climate change. So what is holding back its wider adoption in Canada?

Join us for our September Community Exchange with Omri Haiven from Simon Fraser University!

We’ll discuss the barriers currently facing agrivoltaics, the policies and incentives that could accelerate adoption, and the partnerships needed to move implementation forward. We’ll also explore the unique capacity for farming and First Nation communities to become leaders in Canada’s agrivoltaics future.

📅 September 25, 2026
⏰ 12:00–1:00 PM EST
💻 Online

🎟️ Register via the QR code or at cf58c426-d5f6-4429-8dc8-b0525aacc8f6@514fce24-1e2b-4643-a705-199fa45d5846" rel="ugc" target="_blank">https://events.teams.microsoft.com/event/cf58c426-d5f6-4429-8dc8-b0525aacc8f6@514fce24-1e2b-4643-a705-199fa45d5846

A great discussion at our August Agrivoltaics Canada Community Exchange! 🚜☀️

Thank you to Dr. Yuri Bellone for joining us to share his research on agricultural mechanization compatibility in agrivoltaics and the importance of designing systems around real farming operations.

The session took a detailed look at what happens when solar infrastructure and agricultural machinery have to operate within the same space, including:

🚜 How operating space, implement working width and row pitch influence machinery compatibility
📐 How buffer zones and structural constraints can reduce cultivable area and complicate field operations
⚙️ How overlapping passes, reduced operating speeds and difficult headland turns can lower field efficiency and increase fuel use and costs
🛰️ The potential for GNSS-guided machinery to reduce uncultivated buffers, alongside the limitations that still need to be addressed
🤝 Why agrivoltaic systems should be co-designed around the machinery required throughout crop rotations, with wider row pitches increasing the range of compatible equipment

A key message from the presentation was that maintaining agricultural continuity requires machinery and farming operations to be considered from the beginning of agrivoltaic system design, not after the solar infrastructure is already in place.

Thank you to everyone who joined us and contributed to the conversation! 🙌

📅 Our Community Exchanges take place on the last Friday of every month, from 12:00–1:00 PM EST.
We have some exciting speakers lined up for the coming months, so keep an eye on our socials for upcoming sessions! 👀🌱

⏰ Less than a week to go!
How can agrivoltaic systems be designed so farmers can still operate their machinery efficiently? 🚜☀️

At our August Community Exchange, Yuri Bellone, PhD will explore the practical relationship between solar infrastructure and agricultural mechanization, including:
⚙️ Machinery compatibility and field operations
📐 Agrivoltaic layout and co-design
🛰️ Specialised machinery and GNSS-guided operations
Join us to dig into the practical design questions that can determine how workable agrivoltaic land remains for farming.

📅 August 28, 2026
🕛 12:00–1:00 PM EST

Scan the QR code or click the link below to register!
144b1bbf-e8be-42e0-aa98-9fa89272b594@514fce24-1e2b-4643-a705-199fa45d5846" rel="ugc" target="_blank">https://events.teams.microsoft.com/event/144b1bbf-e8be-42e0-aa98-9fa89272b594@514fce24-1e2b-4643-a705-199fa45d5846

🚜☀️ Solar panels and farm machinery need to share more than just the same field.

Our August Community Exchange will explore agricultural mechanization compatibility in agrivoltaics with Yuri Bellone, PhD of Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Piacenza.

From support posts and panel rows to reduced clearance and manoeuvring space, agrivoltaic infrastructure can create new challenges for everyday field operations.

We’ll look at how these constraints affect farm machinery, field efficiency and operating costs, and why co-design between agricultural needs and system layout matters.

📅 August 28, 2026
🕛 12:00–1:00 PM EST

Scan the QR code or click the link below to register!
144b1bbf-e8be-42e0-aa98-9fa89272b594@514fce24-1e2b-4643-a705-199fa45d5846" rel="ugc" target="_blank">https://events.teams.microsoft.com/event/144b1bbf-e8be-42e0-aa98-9fa89272b594@514fce24-1e2b-4643-a705-199fa45d5846

Where can agrivoltaics make the biggest impact? 🌾☀️

A new study mapped the spatial potential for agrivoltaics across Great Britain, identifying where dual-use solar systems could help reduce land-use conflicts between renewable energy and agriculture.

Key findings include:
✅ 127,087 km² of agricultural land suitable for agrivoltaics
✅ 20,272 km² of high-grade farmland where agrivoltaics could help avoid PV–agriculture land-use conflicts
✅ Up to 338 TWh/year of electricity generation while maintaining agricultural production
✅ 95% overlap between highly suitable agrivoltaic land and projected PV–agriculture conflict zones

The research demonstrates how spatial planning can support renewable energy expansion while helping preserve productive agricultural land.

Source: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apenergy.2025.125527

As demand for solar energy grows, finding suitable land for new projects is becoming an increasingly important challenge.

This research from Arizona found that less than 2% of the state's land is considered Excellent for utility-scale solar PV, while 82% is constrained or unsuitable for conventional solar siting. The study also projects that urban growth will continue reducing the availability of high-quality solar development sites.

One solution highlighted by the research is agrivoltaics, combining solar energy generation with agriculture on the same land. By supporting dual land use, agrivoltaics can help expand renewable energy capacity while preserving productive farmland.

Source: https://www.proquest.com/openview/775828569f61b693930e4b4b6d0395e6/1?pq-origsite=gscholar&cbl=18750&diss=y

🌾☀️ How does agrivoltaics change the landscape?

A new study from the Netherlands looked at four operational agrivoltaic projects to understand how these systems affect surrounding landscapes.

Key findings include:
✅ Agricultural landscape pattern and landscape openness changed most consistently.
✅ Landscape impacts varied depending on system design and site characteristics.
✅ Existing vegetation and farm structures helped reduce visual impacts.
✅ No changes to crop type or historic landscape structures were observed.

The researchers suggest that thoughtful siting and landscape-sensitive design can help reduce visual impacts while supporting public acceptance as agrivoltaics continues to grow.

📖 Read the study here: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0264837724000516

🌱☀️ How can agrivoltaic systems be designed to maximize benefits for both agriculture and renewable energy?

A recent study explored how agrivoltaic design influences crop productivity, solar energy generation, and water use in hot, dry climates.

Some key findings:
💧 Crop water use can be reduced by 30–40% of array coverage
🌿 Shade-tolerant crops may maintain or even increase productivity in hot, dry conditions
📈 Some designs achieved Land Equivalence Ratio (LER) values above 2, doubling land-use efficiency
⚙️ The best outcomes depend on array design, crop selection, and local climate

These findings demonstrate how thoughtful agrivoltaic design can help support food production, clean energy, and more efficient water use.

Source: Warmann et al. (2024)
📖 Read the paper: https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/ad2ab8