Whether agrivoltaics could be valuable for Oklahoma farmers and ranchers was the topic of an interim study at the state capitol earlier this month. The practice involves using solar projects in tandem with livestock or growing food.
The three-hour meeting investigated how farming and ranching can work with solar panels and provide more income for small agricultural producers.
Boren compared the understanding of renewable energy project contracts on private land to the emergence of oil and gas leases decades ago.
“I would just like to shorten that time for our landowners that are using their land for renewables so that they can get the most out of it, but not get taken advantage of and to not be misled about how their land could be impacted for agricultural purposes,” she said.
The study was developed after House Bill 2157, authored by Rep. Mike Dobrinski (R-Okeene), stalled in conference committees earlier this year. The legislation would create an advisory committee to find the compatibility of renewable energy projects and the agricultural industry.
Encouraging agrivoltaics could also help meet soaring projections of high energy demand, said Clay Pope, partnership and external affairs manager at the Nature Conservancy of Oklahoma.
“We’ve all heard the stories, we know the challenges that we’re seeing as far as additional energy needs, but we also support the idea of trying to make sure that we give options to farmers and ranchers that those options are there to help protect the culture of rural Oklahoma and to keep that land if possible in some form of agricultural production,” he said.
Shannon Ferrell, professor of agricultural law at OSU, said a recent analysis of the Southwest Power Pool’s queue showed that direct landowner payments for solar panel leases statewide would amount to $1.15 billion over the lifespan of the planned projects. The U.S. Department of Energy estimates a solar panel’s life cycle to be up to 35 years.
“I think that if we do a good job of educating the public on the possibilities that agrivoltaic development pose, it lowers a psychological barrier for lots of our agricultural producers,” Ferrell said. “They’re no longer worried about an either-or scenario.”
“They’re allowed to dream a little bit about both-and, and can recognize that they have a stable form of income that mitigates some of their risk while enabling them to do what they love to do, which is produce agricultural commodities and put food, fiber and now fuel out there for America’s public.”
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