Your Daily Dose of Climate Hope: February 10, 2026
Solar farms benefiting biodiversity - again!
A recent study found that the rare threecorner milkvetch plant is thriving on the Gemini solar farm in Nevada.
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Reasons For Hope
New research finds that the Gemini Solar Project in Nevada has become a haven for unique desert plant life! Scientists found 12 individual plants of the rare threecorner milkvetch species on the site before development, but 93 in 2024 after the solar panels were added. Furthermore, the milkvetch growing at the Gemini solar farm grew wider and taller than the milkvetch growing on nearby land plots outside the solar farm. This beneficial effect is likely thanks to the panels providing shade, thus reducing evaporation and retaining more vital moisture in the soil. It helps that the Gemini solar farm was built with “ecovoltaics” techniques, minimizing disturbance during construction.
This is just one of many fast-multiplying cases of renewables actively benefiting local biodiversity!
Another recent study from Argonne National Laboratory found more grassland birds on ecovoltaic solar arrays than nearby farming fields across the U.S. Midwest.
A Cambridge/RSPB study from England also found more birds on solar farms than neighboring farmers’ fields.
In Germany, the Weesow-Willmersdorf solar farm has become a high-density breeding area for the Eurasian skylark.
And a solar farm in Colorado appears to have directly helped the wild grassland ecosystem beneath survive a drought by boosting soil moisture retention, increasing plant growth by about 20% or more compared to open fields with no solar panels.
The United States is currently in an entirely politician-driven electricity shortage as gigawatts of solar projects are being intentionally blocked by the White House. And with an increasingly chaotic global climate, we need as much support for biodiversity as we can get.
By supporting the build-out of solar farms, U.S. state leaders can help provide abundant and affordable clean electricity while supporting healthy ecosystems! The clearest win-win in policy today is to prioritize and accelerate solar power progress with maximally supportive pro-buildout legal, regulatory, and permitting structures.
Tell your state leaders that solar farms can benefit biodiversity!
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