Boosting biodiversity with pollinator habitat enhancements at Black Bear Solar

Lightsource bp is establishing this high-density pollinator garden on land outside the solar array. this land will now be home to more than two dozen species of pollinator-friendly grasses and flowering plants. The graphic above showcases some of the species featured in the customized seed mix.

Lightsource bp has also established a second vegetation mix to be seeded under and around the rows of solar panels within the array. The diverse species selected will ensure coverage across a range of conditions typically found on a solar site including shady, sunny, wet and dry areas.

The importance of co-located pollinator habitat on solar farms

Pollinators such as butterflies, bees, birds and bats support plant reproduction and reinforce strong resilient ecosystems. Three-fourths of the world’s flowering plants and about 35 percent of the world’s food crops depend on animal pollinators to reproduce, according to the USDA. Some scientists estimate that one out of every three bites of food we eat exists because of pollinators. Habitat loss, climate change, and pesticide use have caused a great decline in pollinator populations.

To help mitigate this loss of pollinators, Lightsource bp is creating and managing vegetation to support pollinator populations at many of our solar farms. Co-located pollinator habitat delivers ecosystem and agricultural benefits on solar farms – yielding benefits for a range of stakeholders, from solar developers to farmers to surrounding communities.

Discover Multiuse Solar 

Our Black Bear solar project is an example of our commitment to co-locating responsibly sited solar projects with other land uses in the United States—an approach dubbed “dual-use solar.”  Lightsource bp often goes a step further, building multiuse solar projects where clean energy generation shares land with multiple initiatives including agriculture, conservation, and research. Find out more about our multi-use projects.