Legislation has been proposed in Italy that would prohibit the installation of photovoltaic solar panels on agricultural land, with the exception of certain agri-voltaic systems. Farmers applauded the bill and claimed it would prevent investment funds from acquiring the land, which has driven up prices for agricultural farmers, while environmental groups opposed it, claiming it is incompatible with Italy's renewable energy objectives.

The legislation was introduced one week after Italy promised at a G7 energy ministers' meeting to increase its renewable energy capacity by 2030.

"We put an end to the wild installation of ground-mounted photovoltaic (panels)," said Francesco Lollobrigida, Italy's agriculture minister, according to the Olive Oil Times. He further stated that the prohibition would not apply to agri-voltaic systems that employ solar panels that are installed at a minimum height of 2.1 meters above the ground.

"There are very advantageous tax provisions for agricultural entrepreneurs and agricultural land," said Lollobrigida. "However, if you want to deploy photovoltaic panels on the ground, you are changing their intended use, and therefore, we do not believe that this type of practice should continue."

Italy's most powerful farmers' union, Coldiretti, praised the proposed legislation and stated that it would combat the speculation of investment funds, which has contributed to the increase in the price of agricultural land in recent years.

"We cannot accept the shortcut of photovoltaics," said Luigi Pio Scordamaglia, Coldiretti's director of international policies. "We don't want to accept the inertia of an administration that decided not to invest and improve irrigation. We want to realize the full productive potential of that land again." Environmental organizations, on the other hand, were against the bill, arguing that it was in conflict with the nation's objectives for renewable energy.

"It is a serious mistake to slow down the development of photovoltaics with ground-mounted modules, which constitutes the most economical and efficient type of system," wrote the Italian Solar Association in a letter to the Italian government.

Italia Solare calculates that Italy could satisfy its 2030 solar targets if solar panels were installed on just 1 percent of the nation's farmland. A quarter or so of Italy's 16 million hectares of allocated farmland are left fallow because of socioeconomic and environmental issues. The proposed legislation will be examined in both houses of parliament, which has the power to make modifications before it is signed into law.