Diversity-promoting maintenance management in ground-mounted photovoltaic systems (DiMa-PV)

The energy transition has been driven forward over the last decade by the steady growth in the number of photovoltaic systems installed. However, in order to achieve the expansion target set by the German government, the capacity already installed must increase significantly and quadruple. At least half of this is to be generated in open spaces, and further expansion is to be carried out in a manner that is as environmentally friendly as possible. In addition to the spatial location control of photovoltaic open-space systems (PV-FFA), their design with ecologically high-quality habitat structures makes a decisive contribution to this. Measures have already been developed and successfully tested for the development of habitats in PV-FFA that are particularly rich in species and flowers. The DiMa-PV project builds on this and focuses on the maintenance required over several decades – a decisive factor influencing the occurrence of species and the expression of ecological functions. In two regions of Germany, PV-FFA with different maintenance management variants are being investigated with regard to their effects on flora, insect fauna, pollination performance, and supply functions for species groups of higher trophic levels. In addition, the surrounding landscape and its significance for the colonization of PV-FFA are being examined. The project will ultimately create an evidence-based decision-making aid for diversity-promoting care management concepts for PV-FFA and address the specific conditions and challenges involved in their implementation.

Project priorities

Maintenance management in ground-mounted photovoltaic systems

Project region

Saxony-Anhalt