Potential analysis of AgroVoltaics in Austria in the context of climate change – with special respect to environmental, economic and social aspects - Landscape impacts and social acceptance

The PA³C³ project investigates the potential of agro-photovoltaics (APV), the combined use of agricultural land for food production and solar electricity as a climate protection measure and agricultural adaptation strategy. By combining agricultural production and energy generation models, life cycle assessment (LCA) and qualitative assessments of public perception and landscape impact of this integrated use of agricultural land, a basic understanding of the potentials and challenges for APV systems in Austria can be derived. It is expected that suitable APV solutions can increase land use efficiency and can additionally contribute to the adaptation of agriculture to climate change. On the other hand, there are also challenges such as shadowing effects on plant production, additional environmental impacts due to the production of PV modules or a lack of social acceptance as well as landscape impacts that need to be researched. The PA³C³ project applies an interdisciplinary approach to integratively assess the techno-economic, ecological and social impacts of APVs in Austrian agriculture. The main issues to be addressed are - What impacts of climate change can be expected from the latest climate scenarios (ÖKS15) in Austria? - What is the techno-economic potential of APV in Austria and where are potential areas? - How high are the opportunity costs of APV systems? - What are the environmental impacts of APV systems compared to separate production? - How do citizens perceive APVs and what acceptance problems can be expected from a large-scale expansion of APVs?