Merced County is the first place in California to have solar over its canals, an idea that makes me wonder why we never did that before in the first place. It’s an idea that was seemingly suggested as early as 2015, with actual efforts beginning sometime in 2024. Solar over canals is fantastic, as it allows for solar panels to be installed in an existing area, aa opposed to clearing new swaths of land just for solar. In addition, the solar infrastructure will also shade the canals, reducing evaporation of water and even toxic chemicals like bromate (black balls, otherwise known as shade balls, would be dumped into water resovoirs for this purpose).