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COMMERCIAL SOLAR FIELDS: THE FUTURE TODAY.

By: Shane Gordon

If the human race has been known to exhibit one very particular characteristic, it is being opportunistic. It is why a bald man stoned with lemons would come out of coma to drink a lemonade juice. American industrialist, Henry ford has succinctly put this human behaviour into more motivational words by saying that “failure is simply an opportunity to begin again, this time more intelligently.” Knowing that we have failed to protect the ozone layer, and are thus exposed to severe solar energy, the human race – mostly the businessmen and women anyway – have thus decided to advance out of our misfortune, and from long years of research on energy production and conversion, what we know today as solar fields.

WHAT IS A SOLAR FIELD?

If this wasn’t an academic environment I would probably mention that a solar field is just a football field that is outside earth. Because on football fields, people come together to work on energy conversion and usage, and that is what solar fields are for. Only that solar fields are not people, and the energy being used is from only one source; the sun. “Solar energy is derived from the sun’s radiation. The sun is a powerful energy source, and this energy source can be harnessed by installing solar panels. Did you know that the energy it provides to the Earth for one hour could meet the global energy needs for one year? However, we are able to harness only 0.001 percent of that energy.

There is a reason why solar energy has become a trending topic when talking about renewable. While it has been widely criticised for being expensive or not very efficient, solar energy has now proved to be extremely beneficial - not only for the environment but also financially speaking. Additionally, due to the higher demand, the technology has been improved considerably, turning into a significantly efficient source of clean energy” (Green Match, 2018).

Voila! Yet again we are converting our misfortunes to profit, in a much less condescending and safe manner. Solar energy is a much more ecologically safer means of a power source, and we have barely even tapped into the full potentials of this single energy source that has been here millions of years before the big bang. In order to operate a solar energy on a large scale basis, you need what professionals call a Solar Farm or Field. A “solar farm,” also known as a photovoltaic power station, typically refers to a massive decentralized solar array meant to supply the electric grid.

“The majority of these massive arrays are owned by utilities and are merely another asset for the utility to supply power to properties in their coverage area. However, a broader understanding of solar farms could include other ground mounted solar arrays large enough to supply power for many households. This general concept of a solar farm could be associated with both residential community solar and larger utility-scale solar” (Energy Sage, 2018). While we rejoice over this very great system of harnessing energy, a system that if you ask me I’ll say is still being developed, it would be professionally expedient that we examine the advantages and disadvantages of solar energy, so that we may know if the pros outweigh the cons, or we are simply only interested in making some money before we watch the world burn out.

ADVANTAGES OF SOLAR ENERGY/FARM

•	It is a renewable energy source

Solar energy is a non-perishable good that the world would not run out of stock. There is no macho man or robot on earth; yet, that can move the sun away or swallow all of its energy. The sun rises every day, and with it comes the power that is converted into irons, into charging phone, into using a microwave, and all sorts of other human activities. Unlike artificial means of energy creation, the solar energy shows up every day.

•	It cuts costs

People pay lesser for electricity when they begin to use the renewable solar energies to power their homes. That is not all; you can even trade your excess energy, and make some cash. Also, solar energies do not require a lot of money to maintain. The only thing that perhaps takes money is keeping them clean, and even that happens at low rates, allowing you to save more than you would have spent overall on electricity.

•	Reduces water usage

Another idea that leads to another great benefit is to switch cotton farms in California over to solar farms. One of the benefits of solar farming in this capacity is the reduction of water usage where there is already a shortage, thus lessening the water usage of farms. The possibilities are significant. (Solar Farm Sales, 2012) DISADVANTAGES

•	Uses a lot of space

It is why they are called farms. They tend to take a lot of space to cultivate, while some home roofs are not big enough to fit the solar panels you’ll like to have on them. This perhaps is the biggest need of solar grids and power stations; the need for space.

•	Weather dependent

It might be difficult to easily run a solar farm, what is not easy to run is a solar farm when it snows for days, or when there are turbulent storms, that could keep us in the dark for days.

•	Can cause pollution too

The pollution caused by solar farms, and solar energy usage is quite low, it is regardless a contributory factor to the overall pollution earth suffers from. Toxic materials and hazardous products used during the manufacturing of photovoltaics affect the environment. Although the overall usage and abuse is much lower than what it is in most other pollution instances.

HOW MUCH DOES IT COST?

Solar is the fastest-growing source of renewable energy in America, generating enough clean, reliable and affordable electricity to power more than 2.2 million homes. Solar created tens of thousands of new American jobs and pumped tens of billions of dollars into the U.S. economy. In fact, more solar has been installed in the U.S. in the last 18 months than in the 30 years prior. The Solar Farm Developers industry has been skyrocketing over the past five years. Demand for new solar farms has been backed primarily by government incentives, such as the Solar Investment Tax Credit (ITC), which encouraged private investment into solar technologies by offering tax credits.

With these incentives, solar farms and other solar-power development projects have been built at accelerating rates over the past five years. This is because solar technology is not yet cost-competitive with other types of energy used in electricity generation. Demand for construction of utility-scale solar power projects has skyrocketed thanks in large part to substantial government assistance. In addition to heavy demand catapulting revenue upward, falling capital costs have expanded the industry’s profit margins.

In the next five years, industry revenue growth is expected to slow significantly due to lesser demand for solar power generation on the utility-scale level. Additionally, technological advancements in solar panel construction will lead to a greater supply of low-cost panels, making solar panels more accessible for individual consumers.

The Solar Farm Developers industry has been skyrocketing over the past five years. Demand for new solar farms has been backed primarily by government incentives, such as the Solar Investment Tax Credit (ITC), which encouraged private investment into solar technologies by offering tax credits (Profitable venture, 2018).

SOLAR FARM COST: FINANCING YOUR FARM

Whilst you’ll see a return on your investment in terms of energy bills being cut and a new source of income from the extra energy generated, set-up costs for a solar farm can be substantial. You could fund the installation of panels yourself, get backing from your bank or create a cooperative group made up of members of the community. With a community co-operative, local people are invited to purchase a share, which is used to cover the costs of setting up and running the solar farm. Each member of the group then gets to take advantage of the energy being produced and share any profits. Westmill Solar on the Oxfordshire/Wiltshire border was the first community-owned solar farm in the UK and has over 1600 members (Park Insurance, 2018).

PLANNING GUIDANCE

The installation of solar panels on non-domestic buildings and land may be considered ‘permitted development’ with no need to apply to the local planning authority for planning permission. However, like any development, solar farms can affect the surrounding area and there are limits to ‘permitted development’, so it is best to get in touch with your local planning authority. If you’re planning a farm in the countryside, you should also get in touch with Natural England to go through what steps you might need to take to safeguard the environment. Doing this at the outset can help the process to run more smoothly, and avoid costly delays (Park Insurance, 2018)

Drawing a line Unless you are a villain in an action movie, it would be difficult to not see the great potentials which solar farming holds for our economy and our ecology. In trying to keep the world green and healthy, solar farms are a very good utility for a renewable energy source, even though there might be dark days, energy storage systems keep light in our homes and help us save money, earn money, just by using a power system that is here forever.

RESOURCES CITED Green Match, 2018. 5 advantages and disadvantages of solar energy. Green Match, UK; Energy Sage, 2018. Solar farms: what are they and how do you start one. Energy Sage, USA: Solar Farm Sales. Benefits of solar farming. Solar Farm Sales, NC, USA: Profitable Venture, 2018. Starting a solar energy farm business – a complete guide. Profitable Venture: Park Insurance; 2018. Setting up a Solar Farm: Costs, Funding and How to Run It Effectively. Park Insurance, England: