Can solar projects do more than generate clean energy?

How about enhance the health and diversity of local ecosystems? 

Sometimes viewed critically for their land use, solar farms can actually offer a unique opportunity to restore habitats and integrate agricultural practices. Lightsource bp, one of the world’s largest utility-scale solar developers, is a pioneer in what they refer to as “responsible solar”; with over 2 GW of projects contracted with farming families, Lightsource is helping to sustain rural livelihoods, revitalize ecosystems, and drive the energy transition through utility-scale solar.

Alyssa Edwards is Senior VP of environmental & External Affairs and Virginia Brown is Director of Ecosystem Services at Lightsource bp. Together, they discuss how Lightsource bp is balancing the scaling of their solar farm operations with the responsibilities of being stewards of vast land areas through their Responsible Solar movement. Nico Johnson and Kerim Baran, of Solar Academy, speak with them to better understand what this holistic view of solar development entails and why Lightsource finds investment in this arena valuable to their development process and goals. 

Expect to learn:

• How solar projects can enhance biodiversity and habitat through intentional land management over time.
• How the specific strategies Lightsource is deploying on projects today are both cost saving and good for all stakeholders.
• What is included in Lightsource bp's agrivoltaics approach like integrating sheep grazing, pollinator habitats, and other agricultural practices

If you want to connect with today's guest, you’ll find links to his contact info in the show notes on the blog at https://mysuncast.com/suncast-episodes/.

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Mentioned in this episode:

CPS July 2024 V2