I see a lot of: "why not both"

And I am fully ageeing with that but the point of this is one more that we should start covering car lots first before we put up endless rows in fields

Both is a great option but start with the crappy one first I guess 😉

There's some rudimentary info here on why it's actually a good idea: science.howstuffworks.com/envi…

Also, we can have solar panels on BOTH fields and car parks!

Both is better!

But I understand that here in Louisiana, it's impossible. You see, if we covered our car parks then the cars we're forced to use wouldn't get steaming hot under the summer sun.

Sorry, it's very important that we make everyone extremely miserable for no reason. It's extremely important that we don't provide any shade to parked cars here in hot miserable Louisiana.

We also got rid of window awnings. That was very important also.

As panels are getting cheap, the support structure becomes a serious part of the cost (and even of the embedded energy). You need a lot more steel and foundations for such elevated panels.

Not sure about now, but not too long ago parking lots were money-losing PR projects(look us being green), while the field ones were serious.

Once we have enough PV to saturate summer peaks, every next panel produces less useful power. So lower cost is critical

@stux⚡ #whyNotBoth?

(there are some plants that, in some parts of the world, have been shown to grow better in the partial shade provided by solar panels than they would in the full sun)

(I suspect that they would be a bit higher up than they seem to be in the first image)

Rooftop solar, on just HALF of the world's roofs, would produce MORE electricity than is used today from ALL sources. And would uplift all people, strengthen all people, and drive a permanent economic boom.

Let every Neighbourhood become Saudi Arabia, but free.

#climate

theconversation.com/solar-pane…

Solar panels on half the world’s roofs could meet its entire electricity demand – new research

India and China are the cheapest places to install rooftop solar, while the US, Japan and the UK are the most expensive.

^{The Conversation}

All the nations have transmission lines. Running across acres and acres, across manufacturing zones, beside residential areas, from powerplant to city to harbour.

Often VERY cheap because govt already owns land.

Put solar UNDER ALL THE LINES, mile after mile after mile.

Put the solar cells at eight feet, feed goats on the brush beneath the solar arrays, and tomatoes.

Solar power plants are 100% compatible with farming and biodiversity.

The area we will need to cover is a tiny fraction of the total used for farming, and they are not mutually exclusive.

energy.gov/eere/solar/articles…

en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agrivo…

Buzzing Around Solar: Pollinator Habitat Under Solar Arrays

Pollinators—such as bees, butterflies, and other insects—are critical to the success of about 35 percent of global food crop production. Learn about the benefits of establishing pollinator-friendly plants under and around ground-mounted solar arrays.

^Energy.gov

also this though…

axios.com/local/des-moines/202…

I'm probably not the only person to point this out, but fields that are shaded by solar panels have been shown to be more productive.

Covering both is fine with me.

Galaxy brain: large enough parking lots for a solar farm shouldn’t exist in cities and we should abolish car dependence and build walabke cities to be green.

Also infra for over solar covering car ports is 100x more expensive than some cheap panels in an field.

In some locations adding solar to fields helps both solar panels and the plants.

weforum.org/stories/2022/07/ag…

I think it might help keep both a bit cooler.

Is now a good time to mention how car parks increase flood risk by preventing the ground from absorbing water?

Yes I would start with the urban areas!

However there are agrovoltaic systems where spread out panels are elevated above certain crops. They protect fruit yields from excess sun leading to needing excessive watering according to studies.

But yes the urban areas are seeeeriously missed. Did you know you can install them on walls and fencing. They cool better.

Sometimes placing solar panels on farms actually helps. You may need less irrigation and the optimal amount of sunlight is different for various crops. This may, of course, depend on your climate: it is not "one size fits all."

nrdc.org/stories/made-shade-pr…

I've actually read somewhere that covering fields with solar panels instead of mono-cultured farm land actually helps nature, especially animals that can use it to live under and find food (that would potentially not grow on farm land or be polluted with pesticides)

Also seeing as we need to focus on getting rid of cars first I kinda feel like it's a waste of resources to try to make parking cars feel better by adding shadow. 👀

Just get rid of the car parks, put down plants and the solar panels on top. Maybe even some nice parks and sitting areas under it.

I like the idea of solar paving slabs durable enough to walk on and even cover roads.

I'm surprised governments aren't scrambling to invest in these. Instead the UK wants nuclear power stations that'll cost magnitudes more, and take decades to build and integrate with the grid. Madness...

some crops benefit from the shade actually. Some farmers who aren't yet bought out by big corpos need the extra dosh from hosting solar to stay independent too.

Why not just get rid of car parks entirely and make public transit freely accessible?

Start with all car parks, yes. And irrigation canals. And roofs that aren't usable as terraces or greenspaces.

And! There's some crops & livestock that actually do well under raised solar panels! That should become normalized.

Solar panels actually benefit many crops by providing shade. I'm sure it works poorly for wheat and corn and other grains.

Covering car parks is an excellent idea.

At the risk of being contrarian to the admin of my instance (😬):

Intelligent use of solar panels *can* actually enhance the productivity of agricultural land. Turns out a lot of plants and animals evolved in environments that are occasionally shaded. Who knew? 🤷‍♀️

And car parks large enough to support a solar farm shouldn't exist to begin with. Put housing and mixed-use buildings there with panels on the roof, instead of panels over an endless plane of tarmac.

cool story on running livestock under solar panels:

abc.net.au/news/rural/programs…

Solar Livestock: Running livestock in solar paddocks

ABC Rural News provides authoritative coverage of the business and politics of Australian farming, livestock, forestry, agriculture and primary production

^{www.abc.net.au}

Yes, but.

But there are well documented benefits to adding solar panels to fields that have crops in them.

So, both.

Absolutely WRONG...

There are crops that benefit from shade!!!