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Dead ground is not so good for biodiversity, with the standard way you have wild grass and flowers beneath.

elihu 4y ago
Covering the ground with impermeable surfaces isn't great either. (Maybe they have drain holes at regular intervals so that's not as much of a problem?) I'm guessing they will probably need a tall fence around the outside to keep deer away.
unyttigfjelltol 4y ago
The optics are bad-- like this advanced civilization here on Earth decided to make a Dyson sphere of our own planet.
- zahma 4y ago
  I take your point, but arguably the optics of burning up every last drop of fossil fuel are worse.
- micromacrofoot 4y ago
  probably better than mining it
- im3w1l 4y ago
  Already, 96% of mammal biomass is humans and livestock. No one has the power to stop this process, to do what it would take. Enforcing a strict max-2 child policy on the whole world and/or telling people to live in the pods and eat the bugs. Hopefully, once our civilization goes interplanetary, we can try to restore a bit of what was lost.
  - vidarh 4y ago
    Fertility rate is already below replacement for all of the world except sub-Saharan Africa, and it's dropping there too. We're headed for population decline within a century unless something changes dramatically.
epistasis 4y ago
But still better than growing corn or soybeans on the ground.
- therealdrag0 4y ago
  Maybe more efficient but also more sterile.
interestica 4y ago
'agrivoltaics' is a cool thing: https://kansasreflector.com/2022/02/14/lets-grow-a-brighter-kansas-future-by-combining-agriculture-and-solar-energy/ https://kansasreflector.com/2022/02/14/lets-grow-a-brighter-... https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-019-47803-3 https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-019-47803-3
- PaulDavisThe1st 4y ago
  agrivoltaics requires more space between racks to provide sufficient light for the plants to grow. that's neither a good or a bad thing - it's just a statement of fact about the paired compromises that arise from combining PV generation with agriculture. It is still likely a good idea in many places.

Covering the ground with impermeable surfaces isn't great either. (Maybe they have drain holes at regular intervals so that's not as much of a problem?) I'm guessing they will probably need a tall fence around the outside to keep deer away.

unyttigfjelltol 4y ago

The optics are bad-- like this advanced civilization here on Earth decided to make a Dyson sphere of our own planet.

zahma 4y ago
I take your point, but arguably the optics of burning up every last drop of fossil fuel are worse.
micromacrofoot 4y ago
probably better than mining it
im3w1l 4y ago
Already, 96% of mammal biomass is humans and livestock. No one has the power to stop this process, to do what it would take. Enforcing a strict max-2 child policy on the whole world and/or telling people to live in the pods and eat the bugs. Hopefully, once our civilization goes interplanetary, we can try to restore a bit of what was lost.
- vidarh 4y ago
  Fertility rate is already below replacement for all of the world except sub-Saharan Africa, and it's dropping there too. We're headed for population decline within a century unless something changes dramatically.

epistasis 4y ago

But still better than growing corn or soybeans on the ground.

therealdrag0 4y ago
Maybe more efficient but also more sterile.

interestica 4y ago

'agrivoltaics' is a cool thing: https://kansasreflector.com/2022/02/14/lets-grow-a-brighter-kansas-future-by-combining-agriculture-and-solar-energy/ https://kansasreflector.com/2022/02/14/lets-grow-a-brighter-... https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-019-47803-3 https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-019-47803-3

PaulDavisThe1st 4y ago
agrivoltaics requires more space between racks to provide sufficient light for the plants to grow. that's neither a good or a bad thing - it's just a statement of fact about the paired compromises that arise from combining PV generation with agriculture. It is still likely a good idea in many places.