How sheep and solar power work together at the Volkswagen Chattanooga factory
在大众查塔努加工厂，绵羊和太阳能是如何协同工作的
Volkswagen Chattanooga has been creating jobs in the region for over a decade, with more than 4,000 workers there today. Recently, that workforce has also grown to include some non-human coworkers – a herd of about 50 sheep – who are essential to Chattanooga’s solar operations.
十多年来，大众汽车公司查塔努加一直在该地区创造就业机会，目前该地区有4000多名工人。最近，这支队伍也发展到包括一些非人类同事——大约50只羊——而他们对查塔努加的太阳能业务至关重要。
Volkswagen’s solar park, built in 2013, at the Chattanooga facility is one of the largest such facilities at a U.S. auto plant. The 9.5-megawatt solar system provides up to 12.5 percent of the plant’s electric needs during full production, with 33,600 solar modules spread over 33 acres next to the VW factory.
大众的太阳能公园建于2013年，位于查塔努加工厂，是美国汽车工厂中最大的太阳能公园之一。9.5兆瓦的太阳能系统在全面生产期间提供了工厂高达12.5%的电力需求，33，600个太阳能模块分布在大众工厂旁边的33英亩土地上。
Currently, Silicon Ranch Corp. has about 6,000 of 11,000 acres nationwide beneath its solar panels used as grazing land for sheep—or what it calls “regenerative management.”
目前，硅牧场公司在全国11000英亩的太阳能电池板下有大约6000英亩土地被用作绵羊牧场——或者它所说的“再生管理”
“Adaptive grazing with sheep is an efficient and cost-effective way to control vegetation and minimize erosion risks on utility scale solar facilities,” said Loran Shallenberger, Silicon Ranch Regenerative Energy Project Manager.
硅谷大农场再生能源项目经理夏伦贝格尔·罗兰表示:“用羊进行适应性放牧是一种高效且具有成本效益的方法，可以控制植被，并最大限度地降低公用事业规模太阳能设施的侵蚀风险。”
“The sheep keep the grasses low via grazing and trampling and the solar panels provide sheep with shade, minimizing heat stress in the height of summer. Regeneratively grazing sheep can help provide important ecological benefits, as well as a secondary and stable source of income for our farming partner.”
“绵羊通过放牧和踩踏从而使草较低，太阳能板为绵羊提供了阴凉，最大限度地减少了盛夏的热应激。再生放牧绵羊有助于提供重要的生态效益，也是我们农业伙伴的第二和稳定的收入来源。”
For solar farms, erosion can be problematic and the need for solid ground cover is incredibly important. The sheep move around the four different tracks of land of the solar farm to ensure grass can regenerate and the land isn’t overused. The sheep are reliable workers, munching through grass every day of the year in varying temperatures. To help keep the sheep safe, Silicon Ranch Corp. employs “rescue” donkeys to alert the sheep of any threatening wildlife.
对于太阳能农场来说，坚实地面覆盖的需求非常重要，而侵蚀可能是个问题。羊群在太阳能农场的四条不同的土地轨道上放养，以确保草可以再生，土地不会被过度使用。绵羊是可靠的工人，一年中的每一天都在不同的温度下吃草。为了帮助保护羊群的安全，硅牧场公司雇佣了“救援”驴来警示羊群任何有威胁的野生动物。
“The solar park is another proof point of Volkswagen’s worldwide commitment to environmental protection,” said Tom du Plessis, chief executive of operations in Chattanooga. “Knowing that we are producing renewable energy maintained by more sustainable solutions like sheep makes this initiative an example for other large factories in the United States.”
查塔努加首席运营官汤姆·杜·普莱西说:“太阳能公园证明了大众在全球范围内致力于环境保护。”“知道我们正在生产由更可持续的解决方案(如绵羊)维持的可再生能源，这一举措为美国其他大型工厂树立了榜样。”
Sheep are an adorable lawn-mowing solution that cause less damage than their goat friends, who are prone to jump on solar panels and bite through cables. The way sheep graze gives a uniform look to the grass they nibble and offers a more sustainable solution compared with gas powered mowers and clippers.
绵羊是一种可爱的修剪草坪的方法，它比山羊朋友造成的伤害更小，山羊容易跳到太阳能电池板上，咬穿电缆。与燃气动力割草机和快船相比，绵羊放牧的方式与它们啃的草看起来更加均匀，而这提供了一种更可持续的解决方案。
来源：Newsroom (vw.com)
资料查找：蔡丽芹
翻译：邓嘉怡
审校：殷嘉怡
上传：蔡钰玲
