Members and staff from the state House Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee bundled up this week to view the site of a new agrivoltaic project at WSU’s Sunrise Orchard, southeast of Wenatchee.
The university received a $2.4 million grant from the state Department of Ecology to study the efficacy of using solar panels erected above apple trees to provide sorely needed shade from the summer heat. Growers of fruits and berries can lose up to 30 percent of their crops unless they mitigate for heat stress and sunburn, which is why many have already erected nets or deployed evaporative cooling systems to help.
Solar panels could provide an even more effective solution by generating electricity while providing shade to crops. However, a number of headwinds remain — the cost effectiveness of such arrays being chief among them. Lawmakers raised a series of questions WSU already is contemplating. For instance, challenges associated with erecting the panels in such ways that don’t impede equipment needed to manage crop development will have to be considered. Wind is another factor — and the Sunrise Orchard’s location along the Columbia River will provide a stern test — as is availability of electric distribution lines.
Construction is slated to begin in the weeks to come. Much has been learned already in the design process, WSU faculty reported at the site, and the foundations of the structure will cost more than it would in less windy sites where solar panels sit lower to the ground.
WSU will plant an entirely new block at the orchard with three varieties of apple trees just for these studies. It also will be put some solar panels above some existing trees to begin generating results sooner.