[ad_1]
Colorado Gov. Jared Polis and other state officials recently announced Approval of $500,000 in grants for seven projects that promote the use of agrivoltaics, the simultaneous use of land for solar energy production and agriculture.
funded by bipartisan legislationstate officials say the grant shows that the agricultural production and energy sectors can help the state overcome climate change challenges.
“Colorado’s agriculture industry puts food on the table and helps drive the state’s strong economy. “It will help hard-working farmers and ranchers move forward.” Polis said.
The winners are:
-
Namaste Solar (Weld County). We will test converting traditional solar arrays into agrivoltaic systems that support crop grazing and cultivation.
-
Colorado State University (Fort Collins) will study the economic tradeoffs of agricultural power generation and conventional cropping systems and conventional solar arrays.
-
American Farmland Trust (statewide). Implement a strategic support project for Colorado’s agricultural producers and explore the benefits and obstacles to advancing agriculture in the state.
-
Colorado Cattleman’s Agricultural Land Trust (statewide). We investigate current barriers to incorporating agrivoltaxes into conservation easements and propose a template language that enables the development of agrivoltaxes.
-
Sandbox Solar (Fort Collins) will install new bifacial viewing vertical panels at an existing demonstration site.
-
Summit Cellars (Palisade) compares soil moisture data under agricultural panels and in traditional vineyards.
-
Longboard Power (Haxtun) is testing an agricultural “refuge zone” at the edge of a farm to harness the benefits of soil, water and energy production.
Polis’ budget last fall included $900,000 to support renewable energy solutions in agriculture. In December, the governor released the first-of-its-kind Climate Change Preparedness Roadmap outlining the state’s actions to prepare the state for the impacts of climate change, including support for agricultural producers. .
For more information, please visit: ag.colorado.gov/ADCRO.
Source: Colorado Department of Agriculture
[ad_2]
Source link
