Solar on farmland: use your own field or lease it?

What are the options for solar on farmland?

Three routes cover most cases for farmers and landowners. A farm can build a small ground-mounted photovoltaic (PV) array for its own use, on poor or unused ground near the yard, as described in solar panels on a farm. A landowner can lease land to a developer who builds and runs a large array and sells power to the grid. Or a farm can host a design that mixes crops or grazing with panels, often called agrivoltaics.

The routes carry different risks and returns, and farms of different sizes weigh them differently. Agriculture and electricity use on the farm come first. An on-farm system saves electricity bills, and the solar energy it produces helps power the operation. A lease pays rent for decades but takes the land out of normal use, while sharing designs are newer and still being tested in Canadian conditions.

What land-use rules apply?

Rules differ by province and municipality. Some jurisdictions treat solar on agricultural land as a permitted use, some require a development permit or a review, and some limit it on higher-quality soils to protect food production. Large projects can trigger provincial approvals, and small on-farm systems are usually handled by the municipality. The correct step is to contact the municipal planning office and the provincial agriculture or land-use authority before spending money. Do not rely on a developer's summary alone.

Insurance, property assessment and tax treatment can change too. For one provincial case, see solar panels and property tax in Alberta, and for permits, solar panel permits in Alberta.

How does it affect soil, drainage and crops?

Installation of an array on farmland can compact soil, and construction can compact soil, disturb tile drains and change how water runs off. Posts and trenches cut into the ground, and heavy vehicles are hard on wet fields. Good practice includes mapping drainage tile before design, stripping and storing topsoil, limiting traffic in wet conditions and restoring the ground afterward. Whether the land can return to crops depends on how carefully it was handled.

Crops and pasture respond to shade, so shade changes growing conditions under and between rows. Research on mixed solar and farming is ongoing and results depend on crop, climate and panel height, so treat promises of higher yield with caution. Ask for trial data from a similar climate. Livestock grazing under panels, especially sheep, is more common than row crops.

What should a land lease say?

• Term and extensions. Terms of twenty years or more are common, so read the renewal and termination clauses.
• Payments. Fixed or variable, how they change over time, and what happens during construction.
• Area and access. How much land is tied up, including roads, fences and setbacks, and what the farm may still do on it.
• Decommissioning. Who pays to remove the equipment, by what date, and whether security such as a bond is posted.
• Soil restoration. Standards for returning the field to farm use.
• Liability and insurance. Who carries what.

Have a lawyer who knows agricultural and energy contracts review any lease before signing. Funding for farm projects is covered in the Alberta farm solar funding guide, and the difference between leases and purchase agreements for rooftops is explained in solar lease versus PPA.

What does Drake Landing teach about land use?

Drake Landing Solar Community in Okotoks, Alberta, put its collectors on garage roofs rather than on open land, and stored heat in the ground beneath a field next to the Energy Centre, as the solar collection page describes. The result was a small land footprint for a large solar share. Rooftops and buildings already on the site remain the lowest-impact home for panels on a farm, and ground-mounts on cropland are a bigger decision. The project was wound down from about 2020 and decommissioning started in 2024, a reminder that removal and restoration need a plan from the beginning.

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