In April, partners in the BiodIvErSe project met in St. Pölten, Austria, to see at first hand how solar energy can be developed while biodiversity is preserved. The partner meeting and study visits were an important stage of the project, in which European regions shared their experience of balanced renewable energy development, landscape protection and sustainable land use. The visit was attended by the Vidzeme Planning Region team together with representatives from Gulbene Municipality and the Nature Conservation Agency.
The issues examined within the BiodIvErSe project are equally topical for the Vidzeme Planning Region – how to select the most suitable areas for developing solar power plants, how to define nature-friendly solutions, and how to ensure that the environmental benefits are maintained over the long term. In Vidzeme, where rural areas and natural assets account for a significant part of the region, these questions are becoming increasingly practical as interest in solar energy projects grows.
In Austria, solar energy development is deliberately steered towards areas where it competes less with agriculture – onto building roofs, water surfaces, former industrial sites and landfills. Agri-PV solutions are also widely used – solar panel systems integrated into farming, allowing electricity to be generated and agricultural activity to continue on the same site at the same time.
At one of the sites visited, covering roughly 5.2 hectares, solar panels are combined with sheep grazing, winter crop cultivation and fruit growing. Experience to date shows that such solutions are more expensive initially and deliver lower electricity output, but in the long term they can bring additional benefits – an improved microclimate for the plants, better crop protection and higher produce quality.
"When planning solar parks it is important to take shading into account, because it directly affects ground-cover plants and the diversity of living nature. If the rows of panels are placed very densely and low, little light reaches the ground beneath them, so plants find it harder to grow and there is also less suitable feeding and living space for invertebrates. To preserve and promote biodiversity, it is advisable to place panels at varying heights and with sufficient gaps, leaving sunny zones where vegetation can develop. Additional ecological quality can also be provided by simple measures, such as piles of branches or deadwood, as well as shrub plantings in more open spots. Elements of this kind create a more varied habitat structure and improve the biodiversity of a solar park," emphasises Elīna Blūma, Head of the Permits and Assessments Sector of the Vidzeme Regional Administration of the Nature Conservation Agency.
The study visits highlighted that it is not only the layout of the solar panels that matters, but also how the sites are managed. In several examples, PV parks are managed as grasslands – sheep graze there, plants suited to pollinators are sown, and habitats are created for insects and amphibians. In addition, bundles of branches and other natural materials are placed beneath the solar panels, serving as shelter and microhabitats for various insect species and promoting biodiversity through simple but effective methods.
As Rolands Auziņš, Senior Expert at the Vidzeme Planning Region, points out, studies indicate that "in properly managed PV parks, biodiversity can be similar to or even higher than in comparable control areas", underlining the importance of site management in delivering sustainable solutions.
The meeting also featured a presentation on experience with growing highbush blueberries beneath solar panels. Such plants are protected from excessive sun, wind and adverse weather conditions.
Another area examined was floating PV solutions installed on water surfaces. These reduce pressure on land areas and in some cases also improve water quality, for example by reducing the warming of the water and the proliferation of algae. At the same time, it was stressed that floating PV structures also allow additional elements supporting aquatic ecosystems to be integrated – in international practice, such structures can incorporate artificial substrates, baskets or other structures that serve as shelter or spawning grounds for fish, thereby making floating PV projects into multifunctional solutions for water areas.
Overall, the experience gained in Austria confirms that renewable energy development can be compatible with preserving biodiversity, provided it is carried out thoughtfully, based on scientific evidence and close cooperation between different sectors. For Vidzeme, the BiodIvErSe project provides a valuable basis for applying these insights in regional planning and policymaking, developing solutions that simultaneously strengthen energy independence, rural development and natural
diversity.
The project "Development of multifunctional and innovative solar electricity solutions while preserving biodiversity" (BiodIvErSe) is a project of the Interreg Europe programme. Its aim is to improve regional policy in the field of renewable energy by developing rules and tools that encourage the introduction of innovative solar panel systems for electricity generation, while at the same time
protecting biodiversity.
