Helping Waterbirds and Floating Solar Energy Thrive Together

Helping Waterbirds and Floating Solar Energy Thrive Together

by Clarence Oxford

Los Angeles CA (SPX) May 13, 2025

Floating photovoltaic systems, often called “floatovoltaics,” are being deployed globally, from small-scale winery installations in California to expansive energy projects in China. These systems, typically placed over artificial water bodies like irrigation ponds, reservoirs, and wastewater treatment plants, offer a promising solution for maximizing clean energy production while conserving natural land.

However, these systems are not without ecological concerns, particularly for waterbirds. Little is currently known about the impacts, both positive and negative, of floating solar installations on bird populations. In a new study published in the journal Nature Water, researchers from the University of California, Davis, provide one of the first comprehensive evaluations of this interaction, aiming to align renewable energy development with biodiversity conservation.

Bird populations worldwide are already facing multiple threats, including habitat loss, climate change, pollution, and disease. As corresponding author Elliott Steele, a postdoctoral scholar at the UC Davis Wild Energy Center within the Energy and Efficiency Institute, explains, “That’s why it’s so important to understand how waterbirds are going to respond to floating solar and if there is the possibility for conservation concessions at new floating solar facilities. We want to advance clean energy while promoting healthy, functional environments. Achieving this balance requires that we rigorously study and understand how wildlife responds to floating solar so we can ensure that negative impacts are avoided and potential ecological benefits are realized.”

The UC Davis team outlined five critical areas for future research to better understand and manage the interactions between waterbirds and floating solar systems:

Understanding how waterbirds engage with different components of floating solar infrastructure.

Assessing the direct and indirect effects of waterbird and floating solar interactions.

Identifying how conservation strategies should vary based on site, region, or season.

Developing effective waterbird monitoring methods for floating solar sites.

Evaluating potential pollutants from floating solar structures and strategies for risk mitigation.

Senior author Rebecca R. Hernandez, director of the UC Davis Wild Energy Center, emphasized the importance of this research, stating, “Humans are also responding to waterbirds on floating PV, sometimes with deterrence. We leveraged our team’s expertise in ecology and energy system science to identify risks and solution pathways such that waterbirds and floating PV can coexist.”

Preliminary observations from UC Davis field studies have shown that waterbirds like black-crowned night herons, double-breasted cormorants, and black phoebes are already interacting with floating solar structures in various ways, including using them as resting, nesting, and foraging sites. The researchers also highlighted the potential benefits to farmers, such as reduced evaporation and energy production without occupying cropland, but stressed the need for further research as this technology continues to expand.

Coauthor Emma Forester, a Ph.D. candidate at the UC Davis Land, Air and Water Resources department, underscored the urgency of this work, noting, “While we’re at this critical threshold of renewable energy development, we want to put more thought into the design that can benefit birds and other wildlife as we go forward.”

Additional contributors to the study include Alexander Cagle and Jocelyn Rodriguez of UC Davis, Tara Conkling and Todd Katzner of the U.S. Geological Survey, Sandor Kelly of the University of Central Florida, Giles Exley and Alona Armstrong of Lancaster University, and Giulia Pasquale and Miriam Lucia Vincenza Di Blasi of Enel Green Power in Italy.

Research Report:Aligning floating photovoltaic solar energy expansion with waterbird conservation