Feasibility and Potential Benefits of APV on Small and Urban Farms in Southeast Michigan

Abstract

The practice of placing solar panels above working farmland, also known as agrivoltaics or APV, is relatively new around the world and is still in its early stages in the United States. In particular, little work has been done to understand how this technology can support the work of small-scale and urban farms. For this project, we worked with five small and urban farms in southeast Michigan, each with unique site characteristics and organizational purposes. Our research objective was to explore APV as a mechanism for supporting the overarching goals of our partner organizations, and to understand what benefits it might offer to small and urban farms through a feasibility study. The methods used to assess APV feasibility included: a review of APV, food justice, and relevant policy documents and literature; client interviews and site visits; site suitability mapping with ArcGIS; estimated energy demand assessments; hand calculations for system sizing; and associated payback period calculations. This information was compiled into design briefs which included both APV and traditional PV system options, to adequately respond to our partner sites’ stated goals and needs. Of the five farms we partnered with, only the two university farms showed serious interest in installing on-site APV. A combination of factors contributed to this difference, including the university farms having higher funding and more interest in the demonstration of APV technology.