Tilting‐Tracking Photovoltaic Systems Mitigate Soil Degradation Risks While Maintain Native Vegetation Productivity Across All Reshaped Micro‐Zones in a Desert Steppe

IF 3.7 2区农林科学 Q2 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES

Land Degradation & Development Pub Date : 2025-08-25 DOI:10.1002/ldr.70154

Fei Huang, Bo Wang, Yan Yang, Dongya Liu, Yu Li, Yulei Ma, Yingge Xie, Gao‐Lin Wu, Zhigang Li

{"title":"Tilting‐Tracking Photovoltaic Systems Mitigate Soil Degradation Risks While Maintain Native Vegetation Productivity Across All Reshaped Micro‐Zones in a Desert Steppe","authors":"Fei Huang, Bo Wang, Yan Yang, Dongya Liu, Yu Li, Yulei Ma, Yingge Xie, Gao‐Lin Wu, Zhigang Li","doi":"10.1002/ldr.70154","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"Unlike fixed photovoltaic systems, which can only form one ground rainwater accumulation micro‐zone, the tilting‐tracking photovoltaic systems (TT‐PVS) can create two rainwater accumulation micro‐zones (west and east edges). However, the impacts of TT‐PVS on ecological restoration in arid areas remain poorly understood. This study assessed TT‐PVS impacts on soil quality and plant growth in a desert steppe. Soil quality indices (SQIs) were quantified by analyzing soil enzyme activities and physicochemical properties across micro‐zones (Beneath panel, West edge, East edge, and Between panels) reshaped by TT‐PVS and a Control without PV system installed in a desert steppe, alongside correspondingly determined plant growth (above‐ground biomass, below‐ground biomass, height, and coverage). Results showed that TT‐PVS increased soil moisture and reduced soil temperature of four reshaped positions compared to control, with the highest soil moistures at West and East edges. Soil enzyme activity, physicochemical properties, and the final SQIs were also higher in the TT‐PVS micro‐zones than those of control, but their change patterns differed from soil moisture. Nevertheless, structural equation models revealed that soil moisture indirectly affects the SQI by regulating soil enzyme activities and chemical properties. Eventually, the improvement of SQI significantly promoted plant growth, but soil moisture exhibited no direct impact on plant growth. Therefore, due to the turbulent environment caused by raindrops, positions East and West edges with higher soil moisture cannot effectively promote plant growth. Whatever, unlike fixed photovoltaic systems, TT‐PVS distributed precipitation more evenly, mitigating soil degradation risks while maintaining vegetation productivity in all micro‐zones in desert steppes.","PeriodicalId":203,"journal":{"name":"Land Degradation & Development","volume":"97 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.7000,"publicationDate":"2025-08-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Land Degradation & Development","FirstCategoryId":"97","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1002/ldr.70154","RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q2","JCRName":"ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES","Score":null,"Total":0}

引用次数: 0

Abstract

Unlike fixed photovoltaic systems, which can only form one ground rainwater accumulation micro‐zone, the tilting‐tracking photovoltaic systems (TT‐PVS) can create two rainwater accumulation micro‐zones (west and east edges). However, the impacts of TT‐PVS on ecological restoration in arid areas remain poorly understood. This study assessed TT‐PVS impacts on soil quality and plant growth in a desert steppe. Soil quality indices (SQIs) were quantified by analyzing soil enzyme activities and physicochemical properties across micro‐zones (Beneath panel, West edge, East edge, and Between panels) reshaped by TT‐PVS and a Control without PV system installed in a desert steppe, alongside correspondingly determined plant growth (above‐ground biomass, below‐ground biomass, height, and coverage). Results showed that TT‐PVS increased soil moisture and reduced soil temperature of four reshaped positions compared to control, with the highest soil moistures at West and East edges. Soil enzyme activity, physicochemical properties, and the final SQIs were also higher in the TT‐PVS micro‐zones than those of control, but their change patterns differed from soil moisture. Nevertheless, structural equation models revealed that soil moisture indirectly affects the SQI by regulating soil enzyme activities and chemical properties. Eventually, the improvement of SQI significantly promoted plant growth, but soil moisture exhibited no direct impact on plant growth. Therefore, due to the turbulent environment caused by raindrops, positions East and West edges with higher soil moisture cannot effectively promote plant growth. Whatever, unlike fixed photovoltaic systems, TT‐PVS distributed precipitation more evenly, mitigating soil degradation risks while maintaining vegetation productivity in all micro‐zones in desert steppes.

查看原文本刊更多论文

倾斜跟踪光伏系统减轻了土壤退化风险，同时保持了荒漠草原所有重塑微带的原生植被生产力

固定光伏系统只能形成一个地面雨水聚集微区，而倾斜跟踪光伏系统（TT - pv）可以形成两个雨水聚集微区（西部和东部边缘）。然而，TT - pv对干旱区生态恢复的影响尚不清楚。本研究评估了TT - pv对荒漠草原土壤质量和植物生长的影响。土壤质量指数（SQIs）通过分析TT - PV和不安装PV系统的对照在荒漠草原上重塑的微区（面板下、面板西缘、面板东缘和面板之间）的土壤酶活性和理化性质，以及相应确定的植物生长（地上生物量、地下生物量、高度和覆盖度）来量化。结果表明：与对照相比，TT‐PVS使4个重塑位置的土壤湿度增加，土壤温度降低，其中西部和东部边缘的土壤湿度最高；TT - PVS微区土壤酶活性、理化性质和最终SQIs均高于对照，但其变化规律与土壤湿度不同。然而，结构方程模型表明，土壤湿度通过调节土壤酶活性和化学性质间接影响SQI。最终，SQI的改善显著促进了植物的生长，而土壤湿度对植物生长没有直接影响。因此，由于雨水造成的湍流环境，土壤湿度较高的东西边缘位置不能有效促进植物生长。无论如何，与固定光伏系统不同，TT - pv系统更均匀地分配降水，减轻了土壤退化风险，同时保持了荒漠草原所有微带的植被生产力。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

求助全文

约1分钟内获得全文求助全文

来源期刊

Land Degradation & Development 农林科学-环境科学

CiteScore

7.70

自引率

8.50%

发文量

379

审稿时长

5.5 months

期刊介绍： Land Degradation & Development is an international journal which seeks to promote rational study of the recognition, monitoring, control and rehabilitation of degradation in terrestrial environments. The journal focuses on: - what land degradation is; - what causes land degradation; - the impacts of land degradation - the scale of land degradation; - the history, current status or future trends of land degradation; - avoidance, mitigation and control of land degradation; - remedial actions to rehabilitate or restore degraded land; - sustainable land management.