by Stewart Truelsen
October 2, 2006
Triple-digit temperatures and record weekly electricity use grabbed
headlines from gasoline prices for a short while over the summer. Demand
in turn led to record-high natural gas prices, as this is used to generate
around 18 percent of the nation's electricity.
Development of solar energy has important implications for agriculture
and rural America. Farms and ranches are going to be bigger users of
solar energy in the future, and solar farms or large-scale solar generating
stations could dot the rural landscape, at least in the West and Southwest.
Farmers rely both on electricity and natural gas in the production,
processing and storage of commodities so they get a double-whammy when
these prices rise.
In California, Farm Bureau members participated in a voluntary state-wide
program to reduce energy consumption any time a power emergency was
declared. Conservation and efficiency help, but the blazing sun itself
is a potential remedy for rolling blackouts and rising energy prices.
According to the PopSci 2025, a strategy prepared by Popular Science
magazine with the help of dozens of scientists and energy experts, solar
power can supply 10 percent of the nation's electricity needs by 2025.
Wind, solar and biomass together produce only 3 percent of electricity
today so that would be a big jump, and beyond 2025 it is envisioned
that solar could grab an even greater share of the market.
Development of solar energy has important implications for agriculture
and rural America. Farms and ranches are going to be bigger users of
solar energy in the future, and solar farms or large-scale solar generating
stations could dot the rural landscape, at least in the West and Southwest.
Not only are farms and ranches going to use more solar energy, but they
are going to use it for bigger jobs. P-R Farms in the San Joaquin Valley
of California installed nearly 8,000 solar panels on the roof of a large
packinghouse to provide it with electricity. The tree fruit and almond
operation is owned by Pat Ricchiuti, president of the Fresno County
Farm Bureau. Fetzer Vineyards is installing a solar system at its Mendocino
County wine bottling facility and barrel room.
Small-scale solar applications in agriculture include providing electricity
for lighting, pumping water, battery charging and electric fences. Solar
water-heating and space heating systems are widely available to everyone.
Solar energy is generally equated with photovoltaic technology which
uses solar cells and panels to convert sunlight directly to electricity,
but there are other technologies that are more efficient and capable
of power plant size projects.
Concentrating solar power technology produces high temperature heat
which is converted into electricity. A 500-megawatt solar generating
station planned by Southern California Edison for the desert northeast
of Los Angeles will use large mirrored dishes arrayed over thousands
of acres to reflect enough sunlight to serve almost 300,000 customers.
An Australian company is planning to build a giant solar tower in the
outback of Australia. The tower will look like a tall chimney surrounded
by a vast, open-sided greenhouse or solar collector. Hot air under the
canopy is drawn up the tower and the rushing wind causes turbines to
spin and generate electricity.
Solar power is another clean, renewable energy that has applications
for agriculture and could bring jobs and development to rural America.
About the author...
Stewart Truelsen is a regular contributor to the American Farm Bureau
Federation's (AFBF) weekly Focus on Agriculture series. Stewart Truelsen
was director of broadcast services for the American Farm Bureau Federation
until his retirement in 2005. He joined the AFBF public relations team
in 1977. He continues as a consultant and freelance writer and contributes
regularly to the Focus on Agriculture commentary. Prior to joining AFBF,
Truelsen was editor of the Paul Harvey Show for ABC Radio in Chicago.
He received his B.A. degree in journalism from the University of Iowa.
The information and views expressed in this article are those of the
author and not necessarily those of RenewableEnergyAccess.com or the
companies that advertise on its Web site and other publications.
http://renewableenergyaccess.com/rea/news/reinsider/story?id=46102
