Document Type

Policy Brief

Publication Date

Spring 2018

Keywords

solar, solar farming, solar energy, climate change, sustainable farming

Disciplines

Agriculture | Environmental Studies | Food Studies | Life Sciences

Abstract

The large-scale use of agriculture and land alteration has caused the concentrations of greenhouse gases in our atmosphere to rise in the last 250 years (Janke, 2010). The majority of greenhouse gas emissions is caused by the burning of fossil fuels. Fossil fuels are a threat when it comes to the health of our planet but they are also abundant and affordable (Janke, 2010). This threat has caused many to start exploring the use of alternative energy sources that are renewable; solar technology, wind power, geothermal, and ocean energy (Janke, 2010). According to Rebecca Hernandez, “solar energy has one of the greatest climate change mitigation potentials with life cycle emissions as low as 14g CO2”. Solar energy is able to take the thermal energy from the sun, concentrating it into usable energy and it is one of the most diverse forms of renewable energy (Hernandez, 2015). Solar energy modules can range from small-scale modules that can reside on rooftops to larger scaled modules that can be installed over acres of land (Hernandez, 2015).

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