The Italian government has issued a new decree to completely ban the use of solar photovoltaic energy on agricultural lands. The new provisions will not apply to solar projects that are currently in the approval stage.
Decree law prohibits the installation of solar panels
The Italian government has issued a new decree prohibiting the installation of large-scale photovoltaic systems on productive agricultural land. The ultimate goal of the decree is to “prevent desertification” of Italian agricultural lands.
“We want to regulate the use of photovoltaic panels and believe that land should be used for agricultural production, and energy production should correspond to this production.”
The Minister of Agriculture, Francisco Lollobrigida, announced.
Lollobrigida stated that solar installations cannot be implemented in agricultural areas.
“There are tax measures that are very beneficial for agricultural entrepreneurs and agricultural land owners,” he declared. “However, if you wish to install PV panels on land, you are modifying the intended use of the land, and therefore we do not consider that this type of practice should continue.”said Lollobrigida, clarifying that the new provisions will not apply to agricultural structures.
The government announced that it will be possible to continue producing energy in quarries and mines, areas granted to state railways, areas granted to airport concessionaires, protected areas along highways and areas inside industrial facilities, among others.
Lollobrigida stated that the government will protect all projects at the approval stage.
“For us, legal security is important, so the rules are valid for what will happen and not for what has already happened or what companies have already invested their money or investments in.” Announce.
Criticism of the Italian government’s decision
The new provisions issued by the Italian government have already drawn criticism from the local solar PV sector.
“From the comments made at the post-Cabinet press conference, it appears that the government has decided to impose unnecessary restrictions on PV installations on agricultural land, ignoring commitments that have already been ratified.” The Italian category association Italia Solari said in a statement.
a ColdirityAn Italian agricultural association welcomed the initiative to prevent speculation by large investment funds, which puts agricultural production at risk. The association has long called for identifying areas suitable for ground-based solar photovoltaic systems.
Will this measure, now enacted in Italy, have followers in other European countries? What do you think?
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