Green Urban Solar City: Solar carport greening obligation & solar obligation for the roofing of parking spaces

The trend towards urbanization continues to advance. Currently, 77.5% of Germany's total population lives in cities and metropolitan areas. The logistical challenges of goods and transport, as well as the need for a sustainable energy supply while simultaneously maintaining and improving quality of life, play a further important role in this development. Various measures are now being implemented to accelerate this trend.

The goal is therefore not only to improve the urban climate and living conditions, including work-life balance, but also, and above all, to adapt to the consequences of climate change.

Various regulations were introduced for this purpose, such as the solar panel requirement or the greening requirement:

“The obligations apply to structures created by projects requiring a permit or notification under the state building code, as well as to the undeveloped areas of properties with structures requiring a building permit or notification. The same applies to existing buildings if they are altered by measures requiring a permit or notification. Changes of use and minor structural alterations are excluded.”

Similar or identical provisions can be found in building codes or preambles nationwide. These are not uniformly regulated, as building regulations primarily fall under the jurisdiction of the individual federal states. These regulations can also be supplemented by the respective urban and municipal building codes.

Degree of urbanization: Proportion of city dwellers in the total population of Germany – Image: Xpert.Digital

This statistic shows the degree of urbanization in Germany from 2000 to 2020. Urbanization refers to the proportion of urban residents in the total population. In 2020, approximately 77.5 percent of Germany's total population lived in cities.

The values ​​have been rounded for better understanding of the statistics.

Integrating the technology (the technical implementation for electricity generation), solar or photovoltaics, and greening into a single system often proves to be quite challenging. A case in point is the use of agricultural land for simultaneous electricity generation. Several promising solutions exist for this type of agrivoltaics, but so far none of the systems has truly become established.

So far, the focus for solar carports has primarily been on standardized and rapid implementation with maximum energy yield. Amortization or return on investment is usually the main priority, without considering that a solar carport protects parked vehicles from the elements, direct sunlight, falling branches, and direct snow or rain.

The problem is that a solar carport with its solar panels shades the area below to such an extent that greening, as defined by the impact mitigation regulations of the Federal Nature Conservation Act, is practically impossible. Green roofs are considered an impact-reducing measure from an urban planning perspective, which is logically not the case with a roof covered by solar panels.

However, the solar panel requirement for solar carports and the requirement for greening do not have to conflict. With transparent double-glazed solar modules, greening beneath the solar carport would be possible. The semi-transparent modules allow enough light to pass through to ensure permanent greening and enhance the appearance of the solar carport.

Furthermore, the transparent glass modules not only allow for a light-permeable space, a green environment and enhance the urban quality of life, they themselves look good in terms of design and style.

Everything from a single source, specifically designed for solar solutions for large parking areas. Refinance or offset your future costs with your own electricity generation.

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