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Rooftop Agrivoltaics Explained
Urban rooftops can simultaneously generate solar electricity and produce food. Learn how co-located green roofs and photovoltaic systems create cooler microclimates, conserve water, and strengthen food security in dense cities.
What is Rooftop Agrivoltaics?
Rooftop Agrivoltaics is the co-location of solar panels (photovoltaics) and food production on rooftops. Combining green roofs with rooftop solar is still in its infancy, but these systems’ synergies are well documented. The plants benefit from the solar panels’ protection, and panel performance improves on warm days due to the evaporative cooling that the plants provide. Agrivoltaic systems are currently used in farm fields but taking this concept to a rooftop is still unique.
THE SYNERGY OF ROOFTOP AGRIVOLTAICS
With an increasingly urban population worldwide, having a hyper-local food source on the only remaining available space in urban areas, rooftops, can improve urban populations’ resilience – especially in times of crisis when food distribution chains may be disrupted. Renewable energy generation onsite also contributes to a more sustainable urban community, especially as non-renewable energy sources begin to decline. Educate yourself on the benefits and synergies of green roofs, ask your local government and energy providers how they support rooftop agrivoltaics, and seek out local food sources to help this emerging technology.
- Shade from raised solar modules can project green roof plants species or edible plants from the harsh and exposed conditions that exist on rooftops.
- Transpiration from the plants rises to cool the bottom side of the solar modules, allowing them to operate more efficiently throughout the summer growing season.
Research Spotlight: Rooftop Agrivoltaics at TED
Dr. Bousselot’s TEDx presentation examines how urban rooftops can simultaneously generate renewable energy and produce food. Her findings make the case for agrivoltaic systems in cities, where ground-level agricultural space is scarce and food security is increasingly critical.
Key Insights from the research
- Urban demand: Over 50% of the world’s population now lives in cities, intensifying the need for localized food production.
- Untapped potential: Rooftops in Denver alone could yield an estimated 5 million pounds of food annually if converted to agrivoltaic systems.
- Water constraints: Green roofs are naturally water-limited systems, making the shade and moisture retention from solar arrays particularly valuable.
- Microclimate benefits: Plants beneath raised solar modules grow in cooler summer temperatures, warmer winter conditions, and higher soil moisture with reduced
UV exposure. - Panel efficiency: Solar panels operate more efficiently when cooled by plant transpiration beneath them.
- Resilience: Hyper-local rooftop production reduces reliance on complex food distribution networks, strengthening urban food security.
This research aligns with Sandbox Solar’s ongoing exploration of rooftop agrivoltaics and the broader food-energy-water nexus.