CNS Faculty Members Advance the Use of Agrivoltaics

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Agrivoltaics, the dual use of land for agriculture and solar energy production, is gaining traction across the country, including in New England, due to its potential to address land-use challenges and enhance farm sustainability. By installing elevated solar panels that allow sunlight to reach crops below, farmers in Massachusetts and beyond can diversify income streams while maintaining agricultural productivity. Several media outlets have looked to faculty members of the College of Natural Sciences to make sense of this emerging trend.

Jill Fitzsimmons, an assistant research professor at the Center for Agriculture, Food, and the Environment, and Dwayne Breger, an extension professor in the Department of Environmental Conservation and the director of the Clean Energy Extension, developed a new set of tools to help farmers decide if it makes economic sense to pursue agrivoltaics. Phys.org interviewed Fitzsimmons and Breger to learn more about this set of tools and how it is benefitting farmers. “Agrivoltaics—and farming itself—come in so many shapes and forms that there’s no one-size-fits-all answer as to whether solar is the right choice,” said Breger. 

The Christian Science Monitor spoke with Breger about the various stresses that farmers face, including droughts and financial instability, and how agrivoltaics can “support the agricultural economy and farmers" at the same time. The article also highlights the agrivoltaics research being conducted at UMass Amherst’s research farm in South Deerfield.

Read more in Phys.org and The Christian Science Monitor.