In the media: A solar park is not always a curse for nature. 'Birds appear wherever something grows'

Last week the Dagblad van het Noorden published an article on research by dr. Raymond Klaassen (and PhD Sylvia de Vries, not mentioned in the article):

To prevent nature loss during the construction of a solar park in a prime farmland bird area, more effort needs to be made on compensation measures. This is according to Groningen researcher Raymond Klaassen in the Dagblad van het Noorden of 23 May.

He made this statement at the official commissioning of a solar park with 70,000 panels by developer Novar at Roodehaan, between the A7 and the Winschoterweg. This park provides electricity for 12,000 households.

Novar commissioned RUG researcher dr. Raymond Klaassen and the Rudolf Agricola School for Sustianable Development to conduct a study on the ecological impact of solar parks. For this, three large solar parks in Midden-Groningen, Buinerveen, and Vlagtwedde were examined.

The central question is what impact the installation of thousands of panels has on nature. How does a system change when such a park is built? This is significant, as many more solar parks are planned for the coming years.

Read more (in Dutch + paywall)