One universal truth appears to be that the generation of electricity is the bigger and more reliable money-maker on these farms. Macknick estimated that the electricity sales from a site could reach up to twice as much as the crop sales.
Another complicating factor is regulations. Agrivoltaics combines industrial and agricultural rural land uses, a concept that does not fall neatly into zoning regulations almost anywhere. Macknick and Higgins said land-use rules vary from county to county.
When Jack’s Solar Garden, which produces 1.2 megawatts of electricity a year, was first proposed five years ago, its host county would allow only 100 kilowatts to be produced on its farmlands, so they had to get the local zoning rules changed.
Insurance is another headache, with competing priorities from usually separate entities: Developers want a restricted site, while farmers want easy…