VOA新闻杂志2025--US Solar Farms Put Hungry Sheep to Work

A group of sheep on farmland in the American state of Texas work together to complete a job: eating the grass growing beneath hundreds of solar panels².

Sheep have become a symbol of a growing solar industry as large-scale solar farms appear across the United States.

Solar grazing³

In Milam County, Texas, SB Energy operates the fifth-largest solar project in the country. It can produce 900 megawatts of power across 1,618 hectares.

So, how does the company deal with all the grass that grows on such a large piece of land? It deploys⁴ about 3,000 sheep that keep the grass cover low. Sheep, unlike devices such as lawnmowers, can fit between small spaces and work in all kinds of weather conditions.

The work of the sheep, and sometimes other animals, is called solar grazing. It is considered part of the larger idea of agrivoltaics --- the use of land for both solar energy production and agriculture.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture suggests that solar grazing may help the environment in several ways. These include making grassy⁵ areas safer for wild animals, like nesting ground birds, and by reducing fuel use and air pollution.

Agrivoltaics is on the rise with more than 60 solar grazing projects in the U.S., the National Renewable Energy Laboratory says. The American Solar Grazing Association says 27 states take part in solar grazing.

A sunny opportunity

Putting the animals to work on solar fields also provides some help to the sheep and wool market, which has struggled in recent years. The number of sheep and lambs in Texas fell to 655,000 in January 2024, a 4 percent drop from the year before. That information comes from the most recent data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Because solar fields use sunny, flat land that is often good for animals to eat grass on, the power plants have been used in cooperation with farmers rather than against them.

Sheep farmer JR Howard accidentally found himself in the middle of Texas' move to clean energy. In 2021, he and his family began working with solar farms. Howard's sheep ate the grass on these large areas of land.

What was once a small business has turned into a larger operation with more than 8,000 sheep and 26 employees.

"Just the growth has been kind of crazy for us," said Howard, who named his company Texas Solar Sheep. "It's been great for me and my family."

Following the herd⁶

Some agriculture experts say Howard's success shows how solar farms have become a big help for some ranchers.

Reid Redden is a sheep farmer and solar vegetation⁷ manager in San Angelo, Texas. Redden said a successful sheep business requires agricultural land that has become increasingly hard to find.

"Solar grazing is probably the biggest opportunity that the sheep industry had in the United States in several generations," Redden said.

Redden suggested that people in the rural communities near where he raises sheep have been very positive about solar grazing.

Agrivoltaics itself is not new. Solar farms use a lot of land and require a lot of space that could be used for food production.

Agrivoltaics helps with the problem by permitting the two industries to coexist, whether growing food or caring for livestock⁸.

There is a lot still unknown about the full effects of solar grazing, said Nuria Gomez-Casanovas of Texas A&M University.

Not enough studies have been done to know the long-term environmental effects, such as how good the soil will be for future agriculture. However, Gomez-Casanovas suspects solar grazing may improve sheep productivity⁹.

"We really have more questions than answers," Gomez-Casanovas said.

I'm John Russell.

Nadia Lathan reported on this story for the Associated Press. John Russell adapted it for VOA Learning English.

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Words in This Story

solar panel¹ - n. a battery of solar cells

symbol - n. something that stands for or suggests something else by reason of relationship, association, convention¹⁰, or accidental resemblance¹¹

wool - n. the soft and usually thick undercoat of hairy mammals (especially sheep)

rancher - n. one who owns or works on a large farm that raises sheep, cows, horses, etc.

vegetation - n. plant cover or plant life

opportunity - n. a good chance for advancement or progress

1 panel   

n.面，板，专门小组，控制板，仪表盘

参考例句：

• The unusual control panel on the walls caught our attention.墙上不同寻常的控制板引起了我们的注意。
• The panel of judges included several well-known writers.评判小组中包括几位知名作家。

2 panels   

镶板( panel的名词复数 )； 面； （门、墙等上面的）嵌板； 控制板

参考例句：

• One of the glass panels in the front door was cracked. 前门的一块方玻璃破裂了。
• Make sure the panels are treated with a wood preservative. 确保镶板用木材防腐剂处理过。

3 grazing   

n. 放牧, 牧草 动词graze的现在分词

参考例句：

• There were cows grazing beside the river. 有些牛在河边吃草。
• Cows were grazing on the marshes. 牛群在湿地上吃草。

4 deploys   

（尤指军事行动）使展开( deploy的第三人称单数 )； 施展； 部署； 有效地利用

参考例句：

• It then deploys "decoy" programs designed to attract the virus. 然后，它释放“诱饵”去吸引病毒。
• But when that doesn't work, he deploys his secret defense mechanism. 但没有效果，它要施展绝密自卫武器了。

5 grassy   

adj.盖满草的；长满草的

参考例句：

• They sat and had their lunch on a grassy hillside.他们坐在长满草的山坡上吃午饭。
• Cattle move freely across the grassy plain.牛群自由自在地走过草原。

6 herd   

n.兽群，牧群；vt.使集中，把…赶在一起

参考例句：

• She drove the herd of cattle through the wilderness.她赶着牛群穿过荒野。
• He had no opinions of his own but simply follow the herd.他从无主见，只是人云亦云。

7 vegetation   

n.植物，草木，（植物）生长

参考例句：

• As we drove towards the desert,the vegetation became sparse.我们驱车前往沙漠，沿途的草木渐渐变得稀疏。
• The earth bore a thick green mantle of vegetation.大地覆盖着一层厚厚的绿色植物。

8 livestock   

n.家畜，牲畜

参考例句：

• Both men and livestock are flourishing.人畜两旺。
• The heavy rains and flooding killed scores of livestock.暴雨和大水淹死了许多牲口。

9 productivity   

n.生产力，生产率，多产

参考例句：

• Farmers are introducing in novations which increase the productivity.农民们正引进提高生产力的新方法。
• The workers try to put up productivity.工人设法提高生产率。

10 convention   

n.惯例，习俗，常规，会议，大会

参考例句：

• How many delegates have checked in at the convention?大会已有多少代表报到？
• He sets at naught every convention of society.他轻视所有的社会习俗。

11 resemblance   

n.相似之处，雷同之处

参考例句：

• Kehr bears a strong facial resemblance to her sister.凯尔的容貌和她姐姐十分相像。
• Any resemblance of a character in this book to a living person is purely incidental.书中人物如有雷同，纯属巧合。