What would be better to cover parking lots, trees or solar panels?

[burritos]

In this record heat, I always dread walking to my parked car. Sometimes it feels like 150 dgrees. Anyways, a win win solution would be to install over the thousands of available sq miles of parking lots with solar overhead car ports. I know, it'd be expensive, but if provided with energy or taxpayer subsides, commercial property owners might be open to having something like this installed on their parking lots. Heck it might even attract more customers who would like to patronize a green business or a business who prevented their car from frying.

Then I thought, well the same coverage could also be provided by trees. Trees could also absorb CO2, which would functionally do the same as solar panels which replaces CO2 emissions with clean electricity. Trees would also provide habitat for birds and insects. Not as good as a natural forest but better than asphalt. Plus it's probably cheaper.

Thus my conclusion is to plant a crapload more trees in parking lots so customers' cars don't fry in the summer. But if money weren't an issue would solar panel parking carports be better(such as in Cal St. Northridge)?

[icarus]

OH, we can't do solar panels! Do you realize it would take the equivilent square footage of (name your size!!! Arizona California whatever) covered with solar panels!


How many square miles of parking lots are there. At the rate you pay for big city parking, the lot owner could leverage his realestate asset even further. Parking lots are already a license to print money!

Trees are a great idea, but since so much area is paved they suffer from lack of (natural) water, as well as from over heat from all the paving.

I have been squawking about ideas like this for years! Not only could you sell to the grid, but pretty simple to use for charging stations for electric and plug in hybrids.

Spread the word.

[ZC1]

Lets fund the future rusted eye sore broke down unnatural solar panels with anything that doesn't resemble taxpayer subsidies.

Actually it should be funded with the electrical fund savings that the parking lot owner doesn't have to pay. Meaning the parking lot owner pays for the panels since he gets the solar panel output.

But if money weren't an issue....

Money is always an issue, so that thought is rendered moot

I do agree with some trees, non-sap producing trees.

Trees would be nice from an aesthetic point of view and also nice to sit your car under the shade of one but...
to plant trees, for every spot, with real leaves that fall down in autumn, swirl all over and into your car when opening the door, collect up under cars and in corners(making the parking lot a nightmare to clean), needing water, disease spraying, cutting limbs and branches...etc...etc...

It seems for every car to park under a tree would be maintenance intensive and costly. A few shaded parking spots under a tree seems to be the current idea. (Let the other cars fry.)

ZC1

[Godiva]

Kyocera in San Diego, CA already has installed solar over their parking lots. It's called a "Solar Grove". There are plenty of places to plant trees...like the medians and sidewalk easements. I think the Solar Grove Parking lots are the way to go as eventually....we'll be plugging our cars in to charge up while parked. Think of the malls and grocery store parking lots that could attract plug in cars by offering a free recharge while shopping.

[darelldd]

My answer.



No bird poop on the car when you come back either. And you KNOW where your charge came from.

[ZC1]

Originally Posted by Godiva

....we'll be plugging our cars in to charge up while parked. Think of the malls and grocery store parking lots that could attract plug in cars by offering a free recharge while shopping.

And think a bit further about the shoppers who just spent an hour or two in the stores, put their goods in the car and hop in, only to find their particular charging outlet didn't work properly so they really can't make it back home.

ZC1

[burritos]

Originally Posted by ZC1

And think a bit further about the shoppers who just spent an hour or two in the stores, put their goods in the car and hop in, only to find their particular charging outlet didn't work properly so they really can't make it back home.

ZC1

With a phev, the gas kicks in.

[burritos]

Originally Posted by darelldd

My answer.



No bird poop on the car when you come back either. And you KNOW where your charge came from.

Are those panels plugged into the grid?

[darelldd]

Originally Posted by ZC1

And think a bit further about the shoppers who just spent an hour or two in the stores, put their goods in the car and hop in, only to find their particular charging outlet didn't work properly so they really can't make it back home.

Replies like this just stagger me. If you wish and hope really hard, then maybe... just maybe EVs will suck and we can maintain the nirvana of our gas-burning culture. I've been driving electric for coming on eight years and about 90,000 miles now. Want to guess how many times your bit of "thinking" has happened to me? The answer is none. Yes, it could happen. Just like it could happen that somebody opens your gas tank and flips a lit cigarette down the hole. Man, have you ever thought of that!? That would ruin your whole day, and might delay your return home. Or, a big chunk of sky could fall on you. Eeek.

Originally Posted by burritos

Are those panels plugged into the grid?

Yup. It makes enough power each day to charge any vehicle that could be plugged into any of the six chargers, for however long it is there. It is a Park and Ride lot. More here:
Vacaville Dedication

[patsparks]

Why not a mix?
Solar lighting throughout the car park

and deciduous trees planted to provide COOL shade in summer.
Of course there needs to be a mechanism in place to cope with the masses of fallen leaves each autumn but the cooling affect of trees in summer, the automatic open sky in winter and the low cost of installation make trees very attractive, not to mention trees are more attractive.


Put the solar panels on the roof of the buildings rather than as artificial trees.

If you think the solar array above would eliminate bird poo you have never seen a swallows nest on the frame of this type of structure.