In Pictures: Solar panels revive idle Massachusetts cranberry bogs through agrivoltaics

Solar arrays now rise above former cranberry bogs in Massachusetts, where agrivoltaics is bringing abandoned farmland back into production.

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Battery storage and electrical equipment at the sites help bank solar power and fund the revived cranberry operations.

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The Plymouth and Kingston projects pair 1 to 4.4 MW of solar with up to 13.5 MWh of battery storage.

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The agrivoltaic model lets developers and growers share land, with panel revenue offsetting the costs of berry cultivation.

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Pairing agriculture with solar is a growing practice worldwide, and the Massachusetts bogs rank among the first agrivoltaic cranberry harvests.

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Large-scale solar development has expanded rapidly, but agrivoltaics keeps farmland in active agricultural use.

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Supporters say the dual-use approach can stabilize farm finances while adding clean energy to the grid.

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The projects reflect a broader push to site renewable energy on already-disturbed land rather than open space.

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As the first berries come in, the Massachusetts sites offer a test case for whether solar revenue can keep struggling bogs alive.

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