The big business of solar energy in Spain | Focus on Europe

Solar energy is big business in Spain. Huge tracts of land have been tuned into photovoltaic fields, to the dismay of many Spaniards. They say local landscape is being destroyed and agriculture displaced.

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[felixmussik]

Living in Andalucia i am a huge supporter of this. Even if it is in our backyard... after all it was all of our consumption that created the problem in the first place. And there really is no water for farms as it stands right now... so loosing some industrially farmed trees, especially avocados seems like a solution

[SpazzyMcGee]

There are similar concerns about wind turbines. The older generation says they are an eyesore. They need to come into the 21st century. I think wind turbines and solar farms are very aesthetic.

[harrynamkoong]

2:46 "Spain is being colonized and exploited. That's not fair." Coming from one of the original colonizers, that's rich. Never mind the fact that at least on these transactions - olive farms turning into solar farm - I didn't see any farmers losing their plot of land under duress at gun point.

[johnkennedy]

We love green energy, just not in my back yard.

[kenhunt]

Why not agrivoltaic?
You could grow crops under the panels and use drip irrigation.
Swales, berms, one rocks dams, IBC totes, rain barrels and greywater use.
There are many tools in the toolbox.

[shajant]

Spain is moving with the weather.
There’s no water so no farm job.
No one wants to work in fields anyway in Spain plus there’s shortages of farm workers.
This will stop the countryside from dying as it is happening there.
The media always seeks minority moaners.

[tomkelly]

With the panels making shade on the ground and channeling more water towards the gaps between the panels, I would think grass would grow fairly well there. It could pair perfectly with local livestock grazing. I hope the horse guy and the solar farm can make a deal that is good for both of them as well as other local farmers who could work the grass between the panels

[Fellowtellurian]

Just build the solar between the olive trees and sell the electricity white benefiting from the shade it produces need the soil. This keeps the moisture in the land. Also, by now, we all know drought resistant cover crops between tree groves protects the soil. Seeing that farms not practices this shows how little they care for the environment and how they are just skeptical of something new.

[jessieadore]

I laughed loud when he said “spain is being colonized and exploited” 😭🤣😭🤣
Whew, thank you for that. The laugh I didn’t even know I needed today.

[AaronOkeanos]

Why not just raise the solar arrays to 5m and plant olive trees or other suitable plants below it? Dual use so to speak. The solar arrays could also be used to catch water for long term storage.

[miljantrajkovic]

I would love to see solar everywhere, I don't understand the problem.

[AaronOkeanos]

Another idea. Why not use solarheating on the coast to distill water from seawater by evaporation? Maybe so much that you can send it to the more central parts of spain? You could even sell the salt created by this.

[sandelu]

It's close to a desert and it will be in 2-3 decades. If there is not ok then where?! Also masive solar projects will lower average temperature and keep more moisture in the region.

[JeremAl]

Build a f-ing tree line in front of it

[AaronOkeanos]

Why do the farmers there not just join together and invest into themselves, maybe with financial help from the government and/or the EU. Why sell your land, when you just need investment to make your own energy to sell it? This is like selling your car you need to go to work to make a living.

[puttihatnschaf]

As much as the man may thinks he loves horses as little of a positive thing it is to actually sit on their backs. That's also a business built on exploit and not helping ecologically either. But overall it would obviously be nicer if the renewable energy was built atop of infrastructure that's already there instead of taking away from the nature.

[emberverse.eth.]

Hearing a Spaniard complain about colonization and exploitation was too funny! That’s like one of us Americans complaining over a lack of world peace while we wage war against anyone who makes us mad. Please 😂

[JRCMRamos]

Strange that DW couldn't find a single farmer with a Spanish last name.

[YellowRambler]

Well it could be worst, some places bulldoze highly productive farmland down, just to put up endless amount of housing estates and strep malls. They often force the farmers to try to do farming in the foothills with drip irrigation on the side of the hill.

[zen]

TLDR: NIMBYs exist.

I'm sure there are some NIMBYs that would complain about a hospital next to their house while they were dieing from a treatable disease.