A WSU research orchard near Wenatchee will be a test site for a project using solar panels to keep apple trees from getting too much summer sun and generating power for orchard operations.

A one-acre dynamic agrivoltaic demonstration system will generate 610 kilowatts of electricity and provide some cooling shade for the apples groqing beneath the structure.

The Washington State University Institute for Northwest Energy Futures is designing the test with a $2.4 million grant from the Washington State Department of Commerce.

NewsRadio 560 KPQ logo
Get our free mobile app

According to WSU Insider website, the installation will be at the WSU Sunrise Research Orchard southeast of Wenatchee, WA along Highway 28 near Rock Island Dam.  The project is in partnership with Sun’Agri, a European company that builds solar panel systems and the software that controls them.

Illustration of how panels will provide shading to reduce sunburn risks while also generating solar power for agriculture operations. (Photo by Sun’Agri)
Illustration of how panels will provide shading to reduce sunburn risks while also generating solar power for agriculture operations.  Image: Sun’Agri/WSU
loading...

The goal is to study the dual-use benefits of solar panels as a form of orchard shading to reduce summer sunburn in apples and while also generating solar power for agriculture operations.

Up to half of the apple crop can be damaged by sunburn which harms fruit quality and effects prices.  Shade from solar panels is one way to prevent it while also producing electricity.

Chad Kruger, assistant director of agriculture, extension and outreach, WSU Tri-Cities Institute for Northwest Energy Futures notesd that demand for zero-carbon foods and renewable energy could soon move agriculture into electrifying more aggressively if the use is proven effective and economical.  Solar panel use in an agricultural setting could power irrigation pumps, wind machines, robotics, and electric tractors.

WSU-USDA Tree Fruit Research Field Day Sunrise Orchard

Photographs from PNW Ag's recent visit to Rock Island, Washington for the WSU-USDA Tree Fruit Research Field Day.

Gallery Credit: PNW Ag Network

More From NewsRadio 560 KPQ