Research output per year
Research output per year
Personal profile
SUMMARY of research interests (100 words)
My current research is broadly focused on the impact of land use change for solar farm development on stocks of natural capital (e.g., soil, biodiversity) and services provided by functioning ecosystems (e.g., biomass production, nutrient cycling, soil carbon storage).
I am currently working on a Defra-funded project to investigate the impact of different land use options on greenhouse gas budgets using a variety of methods, including whole life cycle analyses and soil carbon modelling. Particularly, I am focusing on ground-mounted solar farms in the UK and how their construction and operation can affect the potential carbon emission savings to be realised by their development.
I have gained great insight into the UK solar farm sector and worked on the interface between academia and the private sector, as well as produced pertinent deliverables to industry, academia and policymakers through ongoing collaborations with industry and policy insiders.
Education/Academic qualification
Using plant functional traits to assess ecosystem processes and community dynamics in lowland fens: understanding the efficacy and applicability of a trait-based approach to plant ecology, Kingston Univ London, Kingston University, Dept Nat & Built Environm
1/10/2012 → 27/10/2016
Award Date: 4/07/2017
MSc & DIC in Conservation and Forest Protection, Imperial College London
3/10/2009 → 30/09/2010
Award Date: 1/11/2010
BSc SW Hons Environmental Management, Kingston Univ London, Kingston University, Dept Nat & Built Environm
19/09/2005 → 6/07/2009
Award Date: 6/07/2009
Keywords
- Biodiversity and global change
- Plant - soil interactions
- Plant traits
- Nutrient cycling
- Renewable energies
- Solar parks
- Ecosystem services
Collaborations and top research areas from the last five years
Recent external collaboration on country/territory level. Dive into details by clicking on the dots or
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Developing and managing solar farms to benefit soils
Carvalho, F. & Armstrong, A., 3/03/2025Research output: Other contribution
Open Access -
Impacts of photovoltaic solar energy on soil carbon: A global systematic review and framework
Krasner, N. Z., Fox, J., Armstrong, A., Ave, K., Carvalho, F., Li, Y., Walston, L. J., Ricketts, M. P., Jordaan, S. M., Abou Najm, M., Hartmann, H. M., Lybrand, R. & Hernandez, R. R., 28/02/2025, In: Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews. 208, 115032.Research output: Contribution to Journal/Magazine › Journal article › peer-review
Open Access -
Integrated policymaking is needed to deliver climate and ecological benefits from solar farms
Carvalho, F., Lee, H. K., Blaydes, H., Treasure, L., Harrison, L. J., Montag, H., Vucic, K., Scurlock, J., White, P. C. L., Sharp, S. P., Clarkson, T. & Armstrong, A., 31/07/2025, In: Journal of Applied Ecology. 62, 7, p. 1579-1586 8 p.Research output: Contribution to Journal/Magazine › Journal article › peer-review
Open Access -
Plant and soil responses to ground-mounted solar panels in temperate agricultural systems
Carvalho, F., Montag, H., Bentley, L., Šarlej, R., Broyd, R. C., Blaydes, H., Cattin, M., Burke, M., Wallwork, A., Ramanayaka, S., White, P. C. L., Sharp, S. P., Clarkson, T. & Armstrong, A., 10/01/2025, In: Environmental Research Letters. 20, 2, 024003.Research output: Contribution to Journal/Magazine › Journal article › peer-review
Open Access -
Shedding light on land use change for solar farms
Blaydes, H., Whyatt, J. D., Carvalho, F., Lee, H. K., McCann, K., Silveira, J. M. & Armstrong, A., 1/07/2025, In: Progress in Energy. 7, 3, p. 033001 033001.Research output: Contribution to Journal/Magazine › Journal article › peer-review
Open Access
Activities
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1st FST Fellowships Masterclass
Pinho, L. (Member of programme committee), Morley, J. (Member of programme committee), Chen, X. (Member of programme committee), Frith, A. (Member of programme committee), Belisario D'araujo Couto, T. (Invited speaker), Smith, M. (Invited speaker), Sas, C. (Keynote/plenary speaker), Pickup, R. (Keynote/plenary speaker), Gontijo Leal, C. (Keynote/plenary speaker), Milne, A. E. (Keynote/plenary speaker), Thompson, M. (Keynote/plenary speaker), Griffin, J. (Advisor), Greyling, E. (Organiser), Grabowski, J. (Keynote/plenary speaker), English, M. (Keynote/plenary speaker), Lewis, P. (Keynote/plenary speaker), Carvalho G Da Silva, F. (Participant), Atasoy, M. (Participant), Ivory, M. (Participant), Prenevost, M. (Participant), Muniz-Diez, C. (Participant), Vidler, J. (Participant), Gregson, R. (Participant), Barnes, S. (Participant), Fiske, A. (Participant), Zubair, M. (Participant), Karasu, T. (Participant), Arjariya, R. (Participant), Harley, S. (Participant), Jones, S. (Participant), Taylor, C. (Participant), Chandler, J. (Participant), Duong, L. (Participant), Johns, E. (Participant), Chen, X. (Participant), Alencar Nunes, C. (Participant), Hu, J. (Participant), Nasr Esfahani, F. (Participant), Allgood, C. (Participant) & Bailey, J. (Participant)
22/05/2025Activity: Participating in or organising an event types › Participation in workshop, seminar, course
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EGU General Assembly 2025
Guðlaugsson, B. (Organiser), Arackal Narayanan, J. (Organiser), Stepanovic, I. (Organiser), C. Finger, D. (Organiser), Carvalho G Da Silva, F. (Organiser), Ahmed, T. (Organiser) & Obriejetan, M. (Organiser)
29/04/2025Activity: Participating in or organising an event types › Participation in conference - Academic
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EGU General Assembly 2024
Carvalho G Da Silva, F. (Organiser), Obriejetan, M. (Organiser) & Winberg, J. (Organiser)
15/04/2024Activity: Participating in or organising an event types › Participation in conference - Academic
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FST Engagement Fund: Nature & Solar Energy – Working Towards a Low-Emissions Sustainable Future
Carvalho G Da Silva, F. (Organiser)
17/10/2023 → 19/10/2023Activity: Other activity types › Types of Public engagement and outreach - Festival/Exhibition
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EGU General Assembly 2023
Carvalho G Da Silva, F. (Chair), Zorana Ostrogović Sever, M. (Chair), Bitunjac, D. (Chair), Kern, A. (Organiser), Lambert, Q. (Organiser), Marjanovic, H. (Organiser) & Wu, G. (Organiser)
26/04/2023Activity: Participating in or organising an event types › Participation in conference - Academic
Press/Media
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Research sheds light on solar park eco-impacts – but clever design and management may offer solutions
Morrison, N. & Carvalho G Da Silva, F.
5/02/25
1 Media contribution
Press/Media: Newspaper Article
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Appropriate Management of Solar Farms Can Boost Soil Carbon Levels
Morrison, N., Carvalho G Da Silva, F. & Armstrong, A.
28/11/24
1 Media contribution
Press/Media: Newspaper Article
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Scientists call on Government to change policies to boost nature on UK solar farms
Morrison, N., Armstrong, A., White, P. & Carvalho G Da Silva, F.
1/08/24
1 item of Media coverage
Press/Media: Newspaper Article
Datasets
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Solar parks could become significant carbon stores: Active grassland management with organic fertiliser, sheep grazing and seeding could increase the amount of carbon stored in grassland soils #policy #greyliterature
Carvalho, F. (Creator), Zenodo, 13/10/2021
DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.5578084, https://zenodo.org/record/5578084
Dataset