Agrivoltaics is a relatively recent idea that combines solar panels for electricity generation with agricultural production to improve land use efficiency and farmer incomes. The SCAPES (Sustainably Collocating Agricultural and Photovoltaic Electricity Systems) project is a USDA-NIFA funded project studying agrivoltaics at three locations - Illinois, Arizona, and Colorado. The University of Illinois project focuses on the potential of combining agronomic crops such as soybeans, sorghum, and pasture crops with solar power generation. This field day will give attendees the opportunity to see an agrivoltaics system and to better understand the possibilities of combining agronomic crops with solar power generation to improve farmer’s economic incomes and resilience.
For more information contact – Dennis Bowman (ndbowman@illinois.edu) or Bruce Branham (bbranham@illinois.edu)
