How Solar Panels Can Help Solve California’s Drought

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A portion of this video is  brought to you by Incogni.  The southwestern U.S. is in the throes of a  “megadrought” so severe that we’ve broken the   record — all 1,200 years of it. According  to a study published earlier this year,   soil hasn’t been this dry since the scientific  record began around the year 800. This has major   implications for the country’s food supply, as  we rely on the west coast state of California to   produce over a third of the U.S.'s vegetables  and three-quarters of its fruit and nuts. Researchers from the University of  California, however, have proposed a   solution that could potentially address both  water and energy crises at the same time:   covering irrigation canals with solar panels.  But is this just another renewable gimmick,   or does it hold a little more water?  Let’s take a deeper dive to find out. I'm Matt Ferrell ... welcome to Undecided. We talk a lot about solar, and for good  reason: it’s a strong contender in the   renewable energy race. That said, we’d be remiss  if we didn’t acknowledge its drawbacks. For one,   those photovoltaic panels have to go somewhere,  and the available room is finite. We’ll get to   how solar can help with water in a minute, but the  challenge around space is important for context. Take India, for example: coal-fired plants  generated 72% of the country’s electricity   between 2018 and 2019. At the same time, the  country has 300 sunny days in a year, and   a large population that could benefit massively  from a reliable, abundant source of clean energy. The problem is … there’s not a lot of places to  collect it. Land is relatively expensive in India,   and its high population density (with an  average 464 people per square kilometer)   further complicates this. Rooftop solar can only  go so far with limited sunny building space. But when implemented strategically, dual-use  options like agrivoltaics show that symbiotic   relationships between solar panels and their  surrounding environments are possible. We’ve   seen this play out in farms where plants  grown directly beneath solar panels are   not only shielded from wind and storms, but use  significantly less water in the shade. In turn,   the crops themselves actually keep the panels  cooler, which helps them run better. I've got   another video on this if you want to check  it out. I'll put a link in the description. That’s because despite their purpose, solar  panels don’t like it hot. Their electrical   components perform their best at or below  25 C (77 F), and have an efficiency rate   of about 20%. Solar panels lose about  anywhere from 0.3% to 0.5% efficiency   for every degree over 25 C. As a result,  the negative effects on efficiency worsen   significantly in areas where temperatures can  climb into ranges as high as over 50 C (122 F). What does this have to do with canals? This  is where water comes into the picture. As you   might imagine, sticking a solar farm over open  water takes temperature optimization to the next   level. In fact, the resulting cooling effect  means efficiency up to 15% higher than that   of classic land-locked solar, according to the  Environmental and Energy Study Institute. Welcome   to the world of floating photovoltaic panels,  or “floatovoltaics”; AKA floating solar farms. Floatovoltaics are kind of like the Murphy beds  of the solar world … just not as comfortable.   When you add solar panels to open water, you  get all the perks of renewable energy while   using previously squandered surface area. And  as for the placement of floating solar farms,   man-made bodies of water like aqueducts, canals,  and reservoirs are what you want. This is because   they’re generally calm, relatively easy to  access, and less disruptive to aquatic life. Most importantly, these pools of water  offer unused workspace. No one wants to   build condominiums on top of these conveyances  — at least, not yet. Don’t give them any ideas! Combining hydropower with floating solar  is one example. Most hydropower dams have   a nearby lake to hold excess water. Floating  solar can be installed on these lakes and   directly send electricity to the already  existing infrastructure at the plant,   meaning you get more energy  production with just a few tweaks. The potential impact of using floatovoltaics  in tandem with hydro is nothing to sneeze at.   In a Nature article published in June,  researchers estimate that covering just   10% of the world’s hydropower reservoirs  with solar panels would create almost   4,000 GW of solar capacity. This is equivalent to   the electricity-generation capacity of all  the fossil-fuel based plants in the _world_. Nevertheless, it’s important to note  that floatovoltaics aren’t completely   appropriate for every biome and might still  need to be supplemented with other sources   of renewable energy, depending on their  location. But where they do work best,   a little goes a long way: research  based on the projected demand for   solar energy by 2050 estimates that  countries like Brazil and Canada would   only need about 5% of their reservoirs  covered by panels to meet their needs. But how exactly can floating  solar help solve the water crisis? Before I get to that, I’d like to thank Incogni  for sponsoring this portion of today's video.  It wasn’t that long ago that I signed up for  a newsletter from a company, I won’t name who,   but after I did I saw a major increase in the  number of promotional emails I was receiving   from companies I’ve never heard of. 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Thanks to Incogni  and to all of you for supporting the channel.  Now back to how floating solar  can help with the water crisis. Canal-top floatovoltaics in particular are  especially advantageous under hot conditions,   which are of course intensifying thanks to climate  change. Remember our conundrum with solar energy   in India that we talked about earlier? In the  state of Gujarat, rising temperatures are causing   increased “water stress” as irrigation canals  dry up. Covering a canal in solar panels, though,   not only produces clean energy and saves space,  but helps protect the water from evaporation. That’s why engineers began to capitalize  on the space atop canals along the state’s   Narmada river during a floating solar pilot  project launched in 2012. By its completion,   solar panels covered a 750-meter stretch  of the canals. This led to the first   large-scale canal-top solar power plant in the  Vadodara district in 2015 for $18.3 million. Since that first foray into floatovoltaics  in Gujarat, at least eight Indian states   have commissioned canal solar projects.  This includes a 100-MW farm that covers   about 40 kilometers at an estimated cost of 1  billion Indian rupees (or $13.9 million USD). The United States has also dipped its  toes into floating solar. In 2018,   the Ciel and Terre company completed  installation of the country’s first   public floating solar array in Kelseyville  County, California. This 252-kW farm consists   of 720 solar panels that float on a  man-made wastewater treatment pond. On the opposite coast, the Big Muddy Lake  solar farm in Fort Bragg was the US Army’s   first floating structure. Installed in June of  this year, this 1.1 MW set-up is the largest of   its kind in the southeastern US and currently  powers 190 homes and 2 MWh of battery storage. Currently, the largest floating solar  farm in the states lives in California:   the Healdsburg Floating Solar Farm. This 44.8  MW farm sits on two ponds that span 15 acres,   and provides 8% of Healdsburg’s annual electricity  requirement. It also uses double-sided solar   panels to catch the overhead sunlight and  the rays that reflect back off of the water. As the southwestern U.S. faces a megadrought,  the water-conservation aspects of floating solar   are particularly relevant to California.  When you consider its water insecurity and   notoriously polluted air, the state  has a lot to lose. At the moment,   it’s gradually taking steps to run  on carbon-free electricity by 2045. It also happens to have the world’s  largest water-conveyance system, where   4,000 miles of irrigation canals distribute water  to farmers across the state. In a 2021 study,   researchers from the University of California  determined that covering those miles with solar   panels could save upward of 63 billion gallons  of water each year through reduced evaporation.   This is equivalent to the residential  water needs of about 2 million people,   or enough to irrigate about  50,000 acres of farmland. On top of this, it’s estimated that if  all of California’s canals and aqueducts   were covered with solar panels, they  could generate 13 GW of solar energy,   which is about half of what it needs  to meet its clean energy goals. That’s a great sentiment, but how do we know  it’s practical? That’s where Project Nexus   comes in. As the first venture of its kind in the  states, Project Nexus is actually the real-life   testing phase of the University of California’s  research. Taking direct inspiration from Gujarat,   the plan is to install open-sided solar  panel canopies over California’s canals   in the Turlock Irrigation District by the  end of 2023. This pilot phase is meant to   prove the viability of the concept,  and the project now has a $20 million   backing in the state’s current budget, with  construction expected to start this fall. As for how testing will work, the goal  is to install about 8,500 feet of solar   panels over three sections of the Turlock  Irrigation District's canals. The canals   range in width from 20 to 100 feet. Researchers  will monitor factors that impact productivity,   like the difference between cable suspension  and steel truss support mounting and the   performance of monofacial versus bifacial  solar panel designs. They’ll also examine   storage solutions to support the local  electric grid during outages or cloud cover. The project uses existing infrastructure  on already-disturbed land to keep costs low   and efficiency high, all while supporting the  region’s sustainable farming tradition. Plus,   the new canals in California can use 50%  less raw materials than the ones in India,   and they can also be designed to allow more  space around the panels for easier maintenance. The actual scale of these installations is  pretty small in the grand scheme of things.   Of the 4,000 miles of canals statewide,  the panels for Project Nexus will only   cover about two of them, producing about 5 MW  of power. Still, this sets the perfect stage   for researchers to watch how the benefits  of this technology develop in real time. So what are the pros and cons? Well, let’s start with the good. There’s no doubt  floating solar is a viable way to install panels   in a way that’s less intrusive upon local  ecosystems and residential areas. Normally,   solar farms take at least 20 times more land  as a fossil fuel power plant to produce a   single gigawatt of electricity. But in the  case of floating solar, you don’t need to   clear a bunch of trees or otherwise disturb  large swaths of land to install your panels. Just look at Gujarat. According to the  Gujarat State Electricity Corporation,   if just 30% of its 80,000 km of canals  were converted to solar, you could produce   18,000 MW of power and save 90,000  acres of land at the same time. The adaptability of floatovoltaics is  what really makes them stand out. You   can technically put solar panels in any body  of water you want: oceans, lakes, reservoirs,   a particularly large puddle. The opportunity cost  of building solar panels on some of these sites   can be relatively low, especially on reservoirs or  surfaces that don’t get used for much of anything   else. If it sits idle and doesn’t have other  attractive uses (like recreational fishing), then   you’re practically wasting  watery real estate otherwise. Making use of existing structures  is even more impactful when you   take into consideration the fact  that developers can skip extensive   environmental permitting and right-of-way  issues. That means they can install these   systems more quickly (and cheaply)  without as much red tape in the way. There’s a boost to the overall infrastructure as  well. The energy generated from canal-top solar   can provide electricity for farmers during  the energy-intensive irrigation season,   and the out-of-season electricity  can be fed into the state grid,   reducing transmission losses and  strengthening the local grid. Covering the canal surface also  doesn’t just help conserve water;   it can also improve the quality of that  water underneath, too. The shade from the   panels can reduce weed growth and algae blooms by  blocking sunlight from penetrating the surface.   These algae blooms are a common headache for the  companies that manage the water delivery gates,   as weed and algae overgrowth can clog the water  pumps and raise maintenance costs. Reducing weed   growth in the canals could lead to saving as much  as $40,000 in maintenance costs per mile of canal. Algae and weeds aren’t the only unwanted  guests floating solar panels can keep at   bay. The shade beneath the panels lessens  the number of microorganisms swimming below,   improving overall quality and  increasing the safety of potable water. Installing floating solar panels is also  relatively easy, sometimes more so than   land- or roof-based systems. All you have  to do is assemble and anchor them in place. So here’s the multi-million  dollar question: what’s the catch? As good as all of this sounds, there are some  challenges. For one, not any canal will do.   Factors like wind speed, water currents, and the  direction of sun all need to be considered when   you install your floating solar. Meandering  canals can be especially tricky for this,   because you ideally want your solar panels to face  south, but a canal’s direction is already set. The dimensions of the canal you use  matters too: too wide of a stretch,   and construction becomes much more expensive  and challenging. Too narrow, and the amount of   panels you can install is reduced, restricting  your production off the bat. You can make some   physical changes to the area — for example,  trees along the canal often have to be cut down   to keep the area free from shade. Naturally,  that adds to environmental and cost concerns. And, like any other solar panel, floating  arrays need to be cleaned regularly. Any   gunk that accumulates on top can lead to  a decrease in production, and you run the   risk of silt buildup from the water itself,  depending on where you install them. With   this extra exposure to the elements, you need to  build in a way to easily access these floating   panels — like ramps in select locations — in order  to allow for regular access. In more remote areas,   some companies have used sprayers and robots  to clean the panels on a regular basis. Floating solar panels also share the same  disadvantages as their terrestrial counterparts:   namely, the intermittency of solar access,  the not-so-clean extraction and production   of the materials used to make them, and  the need to keep them well-maintained in   order to glean enough energy to keep them  productive for their entire lifespans. Worst of all, canal-top plants are more expensive  to build than normal solar plants at this point   in their development. Estimates vary, but  costs can be as much as 10-15% higher than   land-based panels. The bill for installation is  generally higher due to the special materials,   like galvanized supports to prevent  corrosion, the floats themselves,   and the niche installation techniques  needed to get everything working properly. Once you consider operation  and maintenance costs, though,   things even out a bit. Floating solar involves  more complicated maintenance; after all,   you have to get to these arrays with appendages  like anchors and mooring set-ups that will need   extra attention. Still, with all that water  around, you don’t need extensive fencing or   specialized vegetation, which is often installed  for terrestrial solar to keep the panels cool. In the end, Project Nexus and similar experiments  are putting the potential long-term cost   savings of canal-top solar to the test. This magic  number can be represented by a net present value,   or NPV. At its simplest, NPV  is a measure of the financial   worth of an investment. And University of  California researchers calculated that the   NPV of canal-top solar potentially exceeds  conventional terrestrial solar by 20-50%. That figure changes depending on the exact type  of canal-top solar you use. Plants built with   tensioned cables, for example, may have a  higher NPV than a ground-mounted facility   when you consider the additional costs  that can be offset by water conservation,   decreased land use, and reduced aquatic  weed maintenance. Researchers found that   you can't say the same for a  plant built with a steel truss. Some experts aren’t quite so convinced about  canal-top solar. Ellen Bruno, an economist in the   Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics  at the University of California, believes that   the cost of building solar over California’s  canals would still add up to be larger than   the potential savings made through reduced water  evaporation. Whether or not the cumulative impact   of water conservation and clean energy production  would do the trick is still to be determined. There is some hope on the horizon.  Over the array’s lifespan,   the Turlock District anticipates that it will  recoup the installation costs of the canal-top   solar within eight years of operation. There  are also other ways to mitigate these costs,   like tax breaks and cash rebates.  Regardless, one thing is certain:   to compete with the large-scale terrestrial  installations in the long run, canal-top solar   needs to achieve a similar levelized cost of  energy in order to be a feasible way forward. So with all of this in mind, is floating solar  the best of both worlds? Well, Californians might   be able to cash in on a three-for-one deal: an  estimated reduction in evaporation of up to 82%,   clean energy, and maximizing precious  space. The benefits are intriguing,   especially in locations facing increased drought  seasons and tighter squeezes across terrain.   It’s certainly not a “one size fits all” type of  solution. But in places like California and India,   canal-top solar promises a win-win-win:  a valuable source of clean energy that   can conveniently integrate into  the environment _and_ improve it. So are you still undecided? Do you think solutions  like solar canals are a good idea? Jump into the   comments and let me know. And be sure to check  out my follow up podcast Still TBD where we'll   be discussing some of your feedback. If you liked  this video, be sure to check out one of these   videos over here. And thanks to all of my patrons  for your continued support and welcome to new   Supporter+ member John Sostrom. And thanks to all  of you for watching. I'll see you in the next one.
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Channel: Undecided with Matt Ferrell
Views: 522,432
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Keywords: best solar panels, best solar panels 2022, renewable energy, solar canals, solar canals california, solar canals india, solar cell, solar energy, solar panel efficiency, solar panel system, solar panel technology, solar panels, solar panels for home, solar panels over canals, solar power, undecided with matt ferrell
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Length: 16min 8sec (968 seconds)
Published: Tue Nov 29 2022
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