In the long term, Czajkowski sees the solar array—and any additional agrivoltaic projects he might undertake—as an extra layer of financial security.
“I don’t get a pension. I have to save for it. If I do these three or four projects that we have in the pipeline, I’ll get a pretty good stream of passive income that will help me as I get older and will help me pass the farm on to the next generation.”
The solar industry has a lot to gain as well. The Solar Futures Study estimates that solar energy could require the use of 5.7 million acres of land by 2035. Although this acreage is only 0.3% of the continental U.S. land area, siting large-scale solar can cause local land-use conflicts, particularly with agricultural land. Agrivoltaic projects have the potential to resolve some of these conflicts, to the benefit of both farmers and the solar industry.
Official news published at https://www.energy.gov/eere/articles/making-hay-and-solar-power-while-sun-shines
