Institut für Landschafts- und Pflanzenökologie

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Agrivoltaics: The environmental impacts of combining food crop cultivation and solar energy generation
(2023) Wagner, Moritz; Lask, Jan; Kiesel, Andreas; Lewandowski, Iris; Weselek, Axel; Högy, Petra; Trommsdorff, Max; Schnaiker, Marc-André; Bauerle, Andrea
The demand for food and renewable energy is increasing significantly, whereas the availability of land for agricultural use is declining. Agrivoltaic systems (AVS), which combine agricultural production with solar energy generation on the same area, are a promising opportunity with the potential to satisfy this demand while avoiding land-use conflicts. In the current study, a Consequential Life-Cycle Assessment (CLCA) was conducted to holistically assess the environmental consequences arising from a shift from single-use agriculture to AVS in Germany. The results of the study show that the environmental consequences of the installation of overhead AVS on agricultural land are positive and reduce the impacts in 15 of the 16 analysed impact categories especially for climate change, eutrophication and fossil resource use, as well as in the single score assessment, mainly due to the substitution of the marginal energy mix. It was demonstrated that, under certain conditions, AVS can contribute to the extension of renewable energy production resources without reducing food production resources. These include maintaining the agricultural yields underneath the photovoltaic (PV) modules, seeking synergies between solar energy generation and crop production and minimising the loss of good agricultural land.
Cd and Zn concentrations in soil and silage maize following the addition of P fertilizer
(2021) Niño-Savala, Andrea Giovanna; Weishaar, Benedikt; Franzaring, Jürgen; Liu, Xuejun; Fangmeier, Andreas
Studies of soil Cd and Zn are often performed on sites that are contaminated or have deficient Zn conditions. Soil characteristics and crop management could impact the soil mobility and uptake of Cd and Zn, even when considering unpolluted Cd soils and adequate soil Zn levels. The concentrations of these two metals were assessed in soil and silage maize under five P fertilization treatments at two growth stages under low Cd and sufficient Zn conditions. Pearson correlation coefficients and stepwise linear regressions were calculated to investigate the soil characteristics influencing the bioavailable metal fraction in soil and the metal concentration in silage maize. P treatments did not impact Cd accumulation in maize; however, the Zn uptake was affected by P placement at the leaf development stage. From early development to maturity, the Cd level in maize decreased to 10% of the initial uptake, while the Zn level decreased to 50% of the initial uptake. This reduction in both metals may be attributed to a dilution effect derived from high biomass production. Silage maize could alleviate the initial Cd uptake while diminishing the depressant effect of P fertilizer on Zn concentration. Further research is required to understand the effect of P fertilizer on Cd uptake and its relation to Zn under field conditions at early and mature stages.

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