RESEARCH PAPER
Development of photovoltaic power plants in the context of their impact
on the agricultural production space
1
Faculty of Civil Engineering and Resource Management, AGH University of Krakow, Mickiewicza 30, 30-059 Krakow, Poland
Final revision date: 2025-01-11
Acceptance date: 2025-01-22
Publication date: 2025-03-27
Corresponding author
Szymon Pelczar
Faculty of Civil Engineering and Resource Management, AGH University of Krakow, al. Mickiewicza 30, 30-059 Krakow, Poland
Faculty of Civil Engineering and Resource Management, AGH University of Krakow, al. Mickiewicza 30, 30-059 Krakow, Poland
Int. Agrophys. 2025, 39(2): 175-189
HIGHLIGHTS
- Photovoltaic power plants require large land for development
- Photovoltaic power plants do not impact significantly on arable soil loss
- Solar energy systems development does not affect national food safety
- Prudence suggests the impact on soil properties should be studied in detail
KEYWORDS
TOPICS
ABSTRACT
The purpose of this study is to assess the impact of utility-scale photovoltaic power plants on the agricultural production space in Poland. The research, based on constructed power plants under exploitation, provides important information on the scope of knowledge concerning the impact of these power plants on the environment in the context of reducing available agricultural land and arable soil. The results of this study reveal that the cumulative impact of solar energy development on the subject of the study is low, despite the fact that on a local scale, land transformation for photovoltaic power plants seems to highly affect land use. Overall, the results indicate that the mean land use intensity of photovoltaic power plants is 1.24 ha per every 1 MW of installed capacity, what translates into the wheat yield loss reaching 5.96 Mg per 1 MW annually. Significantly, the results show that even large amounts of installed capacity from photovoltaic power plants do not significantly impact agricultural production space. Research also emphasises the necessity of best quality arable soil preservation and calls into question, whether the development of agrophotovoltaic and floating solar power plants is reasonable in Poland, considering accessible land.
CONFLICT OF INTEREST
The Author declare he has no conflict of interest. Any professional or private situation of the Author had no influence on the research and its result. The Author confirms he is an employee at Valorem Energies Poland (renewable company).
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