PROJECT DESCRIPTION
BACKGROUND
European agriculture faces growing threats from climate change, including desertification, economic losses, inflation, and food shortages. Farmers must adapt to maintain crop yields, soil health, and resource efficiency under increasingly uncertain conditions. Climate hazards such as heatwaves, droughts, floods, and frosts already damage crops and soils, reducing profitability and threatening farm survival. While not the only driver, desertification is advancing in Europe and contributes at putting up to 30% of farmland (56 million hectares) at risk of abandonment. Southern countries such as Spain, France, Italy, Greece, and Croatia are particularly exposed to this degradation.
Extreme climate events like the 2018 drought caused EU farmers losses of around €2.5 billion, with 2019 also marked by sharp yield reductions. These events create both lower harvests and higher food prices, intensifying economic strain on farmers and consumers. Water scarcity further compounds the challenge, with irrigation demand projected to rise between 4% and 18% by 2100.
Agriculture, though highly vulnerable, also offers great potential for adaptation and climate mitigation. Agrivoltaics, which integrate solar panels with farming, can provide energy while protecting crops from climatic extremes. Dynamic agrivoltaics systems (DAV), using movable structures to track the sun’s path, reduce heat stress, evaporation, and frost risk while supporting crop productivity. Better water management practices, such as drip irrigation, reuse, and improved planning, are crucial but remain underutilized. At the same time, restoring soil ecological quality through cover cropping, conservation agriculture, and agroforestry is urgently needed. Healthy soils improve resilience, enhance fertility, store carbon, and stabilize yields. To achieve this, an integrated soil-plant-atmosphere approach is required, managing water, nutrients, and biodiversity together.
OBJECTIVES
The aim of the CROPS-LIFE project is to demonstrate the effectiveness of DAV in synergy with optimized water resource management and soil practices to enhance crop protection against climate change, conserve water resources for agriculture, and increase soil microorganisms’ abundance and capacity. Key components of the project include:
• Managed Agrivoltaic Panels. These panels create a controlled microclimate, protecting crops from severe weather and improving soil ecological quality. They stabilize temperature and light exposure, fostering a more favourable environment for plant growth and soil health.
• Optimized Water Management. The project incorporates a sophisticated water management system, featuring controlled partial rainwater harvesting and efficient irrigation practices. This approach reduces water waste and ensures optimal use, crucial for adapting to climate variability.
• Cover Crops and Soil Services Modelling. Integrating cover crops enhances soil structure, nutrient cycling, and microbial activity. Soil services modelling supports this by optimizing soil functions and promoting sustainable agricultural practices.
The project specific objectives are:
1) To validate on a large scale the potential to optimize water resource management through the integration of DAV, advanced modelling techniques
2) Validate the potential to enhance soil ecological quality on a large scale by integrating DAV with optimized soil management practices
3) Quantify the impact of DAV on micro-meteorological conditions and water fluxes within the agricultural system.
4) Evaluate the effectiveness of DAV in providing water protection and storage solutions,
5) Adapt and replicate the findings and technologies developed in the project for application to Mediterranean climates.
RESULTS
The project will develop a robust and adaptable agricultural system capable of withstanding climate-related stresses and contributing to long-term food security. Through practical implementation and collaboration with farmers and stakeholders, the project will test the proposed approach in five different French departments and four different crops (maize, apple, peach and vine) with the aim to achieving the following quantitative results:
• Water use efficiency ratio: 30% of reduction of water use
• Soil moisture levels: 60% of useful reserve filled, or just above the stress limit
• Soil organic matter content and quality: 20% increase in active fraction
• Soil organic matter abundance: 30% increase in C biomass
• Soil potential respiration rate: 30% increase in energetic carbon
• Soil nitrogen mineralisation potential: 10 to 30% saving in mineral nitrogen
• Soil biodiversity index (Habitats): Increase of 10% of the diversity index
• Changes in micro-climatic variables controlling the local climatic demand: ET0 reduction by 15%
• Soil evaporation rate: 15% reduction
• Plant transpiration rate: 15% reduction
• Water infiltration rate: 15% increase
• Crop Yield: at least 10% more of the yield observed in the control.
• Mycorrhizal abundance and diversity: Increase of 20% in the number of viable spores in the soil and root colonization rate under the CROPS-LIFE solution, with at least 90% similarity between the species found under the PV panels and those in the control plots.
• Water storage capacity: 1 additional irrigation turn or save water for an "emergency irrigation"
• Climate risk mitigation index: Depending on the type of extreme events, we will protect at least from 30% of climatic damages compare to the control plot
• Exposition area for hydric and thermic stresses per crop: % difference in exposition area between control and DAV solution