**5. Land use codes and their impact on agricultural output and solar power generation on agricultural land**

This section illustrates three applications of the land use code in managing solar farms on agricultural land as particularly impactful on the productivity of crop yields and solar energy generation: the mixed use of solar panel installation and original use, the distance between solar arrays, and the elevation of solar panels' aboveground level.

Firstly, incorporating a mixed-use scheme between agriculture and solar panels residing on the agricultural land (crops grown beneath solar panels, cf. **Figure 3**) can be derived from agroforestry experience where the simultaneous implementation of two types of products on the same land area can optimize its overall productivity [24].

**53**

**6. Outlook**

**Figure 3.**

*The Effects of Green Energy Production on Farmland: A Case Study in Yunlin County, Taiwan*

Although less solar radiation is available under solar panels, potentially affecting crop productivity and types of crops suited for this type of planting, based on simulation analysis, a mixed-use scheme has higher combined productivity (solar power generation plus crop yields) than a single-use solar farm or agro-farm would on its own [25]. Additionally, a full-density solar panel pattern deploys the optimal configuration for electricity generation and can yield higher combined productivity of the land use than a half-density pattern. The higher the proportion of land dedicated to solar panels, the lower the production of crops. However, the correspondence is not one to one. An increase in solar panel land use yields a proportionally lower decrease in crop yield. In Taiwan, to meet food supply targets by keeping some portion of agricultural land for farming, 40% and 70% are set as the respective caps in the land use code for viable and nonviable (or contaminated)

*(a-b): Photovoltaic arrays in central Yunlin County with solar trackers to allow for higher efficiency by tracking* 

The impact of the land use codes regarding the distance between solar arrays has been less studied, although too small of a distance between arrays is likely to negatively affect solar radiation. The third factor at play—solar panel elevation—likely affects the productivity of solar power generation due to dust deposition as well as the productivity of crop yields due to the influenced solar radiation on the ground, ventilation by the wind, and farming activities [24, 25]. A 4-meter elevation is generally regarded as satisfactory [25], and 4.5 meters is adopted as the cap in the codes for Taiwan [18]. These three factors, mixed-use, elevation, and distance between solar panels, can play crucial roles in achieving some of the *Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)* of the United Nations' 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development [26], among others, set at the national or regional level. For example, to remain at a certain level of self-sustaining food supply, a maximum level of land designated for solar farms must be adopted to allow ample room for food production. At the same time, a land use code that provides for a full density of mixed use can be adopted to achieve maximum combined productivity of solar power as well as crop yield. This takes full advantage of land and boosts maximum green energy production. Such a mixed-use scheme can be introduced and expanded to diminish poverty, reduce inequalities, and develop sustainable communities. Nonetheless, the knowledge on such potential implementations is still scarce, and further research is required.

Green energy is not unequivocally met with positive feelings among the population. Reasons for this are complex and hard to pinpoint. Yunlin County is slowly over-aging facing emigration toward structurally better developed areas. In how far

agricultural land that may be used for solar farm implementation [18].

*the direct sunlight beam. Less dense module spacing allow for mixed-land use if feasible.*

*DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.85906*

*The Effects of Green Energy Production on Farmland: A Case Study in Yunlin County, Taiwan DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.85906*

**Figure 3.**

*Land Use Change and Sustainability*

(who have a 70% maximum limit) only when landowners have been devoted to decontamination, but the land has failed to recover. This condition does not apply, however, to potential future contaminated land for a variety of reasons, including to avoid cases of intentional contamination [21]. Furthermore, subsided or salted land that loses agricultural capacity can be considered for the building of solar farms [18].

The deployment of solar farms may cause a series of issues from changes in land cover and landscape to impacts on environmental and economic functions of the designated land and surrounding areas (cf. **Table 1**). A change in land cover has potential environmental impacts on biodiversity as well as ecological value and function [16]. These environmental impacts are possible not only at the site of the solar farm itself but also in nearby areas whose ecological systems are inseparable. As land is taken up by solar panels, this affects the landscape and original function of the land, and economic impacts on the agricultural industry may occur due to a compromised microclimate under the panels due to a decrease solar radiation, less rain uptake, and so on [22]. In addition to these various generalizable issues, Taiwan has encountered some unique issues of its own in implementing solar farm policy; the original functioning of some agro-farms has degraded or been abandoned altogether due to insufficiently robust design of the relevant laws initiated by the then inexperienced legislature; cheating and illegal behavior of agro-solar farm owners has occurred, and high costs and intensive labor requirements for the monitoring and enforcing of these laws have been incurred (cf. **Table 1**). In 2013 the regulations for building solar panels on agricultural land were first included in the law by the central government's agricultural agency [18]. At this time, however, a considerable amount of farmland had already been replaced by solar farms due to premature laws that did not require the participation of agricultural agencies in the process of reviewing solar farm applications. Later in 2017 newly implemented laws required the agrosolar farm to maintain the agricultural function to the degree required in the review process, and failing to keep up this agricultural performance would cause termination of the solar farms in the worst case. The high financial return possible from solar power caused cheating and illegal farming practices to skirt these requirements to occur, which in turn calls for high-cost and labor-intensive monitoring on behalf of the government to enforce these laws, particularly given the enormous number of cases [19, 23]. In addition to this incentive to mismanage the agricultural side of solar-agro production, some tenants' farming businesses have been terminated altogether by landlords seeking these higher revenues from solar energy [20].

**5. Land use codes and their impact on agricultural output and solar** 

This section illustrates three applications of the land use code in managing solar farms on agricultural land as particularly impactful on the productivity of crop yields and solar energy generation: the mixed use of solar panel installation and original use, the distance between solar arrays, and the elevation of solar panels'

Firstly, incorporating a mixed-use scheme between agriculture and solar panels residing on the agricultural land (crops grown beneath solar panels, cf. **Figure 3**) can be derived from agroforestry experience where the simultaneous implementation of two types of products on the same land area can optimize its overall productivity [24].

**power generation on agricultural land**

**4. Current challenges with respect to solar farm deployment**

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aboveground level.

*(a-b): Photovoltaic arrays in central Yunlin County with solar trackers to allow for higher efficiency by tracking the direct sunlight beam. Less dense module spacing allow for mixed-land use if feasible.*

Although less solar radiation is available under solar panels, potentially affecting crop productivity and types of crops suited for this type of planting, based on simulation analysis, a mixed-use scheme has higher combined productivity (solar power generation plus crop yields) than a single-use solar farm or agro-farm would on its own [25]. Additionally, a full-density solar panel pattern deploys the optimal configuration for electricity generation and can yield higher combined productivity of the land use than a half-density pattern. The higher the proportion of land dedicated to solar panels, the lower the production of crops. However, the correspondence is not one to one. An increase in solar panel land use yields a proportionally lower decrease in crop yield. In Taiwan, to meet food supply targets by keeping some portion of agricultural land for farming, 40% and 70% are set as the respective caps in the land use code for viable and nonviable (or contaminated) agricultural land that may be used for solar farm implementation [18].

The impact of the land use codes regarding the distance between solar arrays has been less studied, although too small of a distance between arrays is likely to negatively affect solar radiation. The third factor at play—solar panel elevation—likely affects the productivity of solar power generation due to dust deposition as well as the productivity of crop yields due to the influenced solar radiation on the ground, ventilation by the wind, and farming activities [24, 25]. A 4-meter elevation is generally regarded as satisfactory [25], and 4.5 meters is adopted as the cap in the codes for Taiwan [18].

These three factors, mixed-use, elevation, and distance between solar panels, can play crucial roles in achieving some of the *Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)* of the United Nations' 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development [26], among others, set at the national or regional level. For example, to remain at a certain level of self-sustaining food supply, a maximum level of land designated for solar farms must be adopted to allow ample room for food production. At the same time, a land use code that provides for a full density of mixed use can be adopted to achieve maximum combined productivity of solar power as well as crop yield. This takes full advantage of land and boosts maximum green energy production. Such a mixed-use scheme can be introduced and expanded to diminish poverty, reduce inequalities, and develop sustainable communities. Nonetheless, the knowledge on such potential implementations is still scarce, and further research is required.
