Solar arrays create novel environments that uniquely alter plant responses

作者：Matthew A. Sturchio, Steven A. Kannenberg, Tillie A. Pinkowitz, Alan K. Knapp · 发表于：Plants People Planet · 年份：2024 · DOI：10.1002/ppp3.10554 · 被引用次数：40 · 研究领域：Photovoltaic Systems and Sustainability、Photovoltaic System Optimization Techniques、solar cell performance optimization

Societal Impact Statement Globally, the combustion of fossil fuels represents the vast majority of greenhouse gas emissions, and as such, a transition to renewable forms of energy provides the greatest potential for mitigating climate warming. Although solar photovoltaic energy generation is a leading climate solution, these energy facilities have a significant spatial footprint. Naturally, concerns regarding the coexistence of solar development in agriculturally productive and pristine native ecosystems remain. This study offers insight for how plants respond to novel environmental conditions within a solar array and contextualizes results to inform future array siting, design, and management to realize a sustainable solar energy future. Summary Photovoltaic (PV) solar arrays impose dynamic shading regimes and redistribute precipitation to the ecosystems beneath, leading to spatial and temporal heterogeneity in plant growth environments. Although PV are known to alter ecosystem‐level processes in managed and native landscapes, the control of PV‐induced microenvironments on plant ecophysiological responses are largely unexplored. A more robust and mechanistic understanding of how PV microenvironments control plant response will inform management of existing solar arrays and provide insight for future arrays designed to enhance ecosystem services. Here, we evaluated carbon (photosynthetic parameters) and water relations (daily patterns of leaf water potential (ψ L ) and stomat...