Live ‘Lamb Cam’ Shows Grazing Sheep In Solar Field

APOLLO BEACH, FL -- When you're touting the use of solar power to save energy and money, it hardly makes sense to use gas-guzzling lawn mowers to mow your solar fields.

So Tampa Electric decided to enlist a team of environmentally friendly landscapers who literally work for food.

This week, TECO released herds of rented lawn-loving Katahdin sheep to its solar fields. The sheep will earn their keep by munching on the surrounding grass.

"No, we're not trying to pull the wool over your eyes," quipped TECO spokeswoman Cherie Jacobs in an announcement on the initiative. "Grazing sheep provide a significant cost savings over traditional mechanical lawn mowers, and they are better for the environment."

This breed of domesticated sheep hails from the Katahdin Mountain region of Maine where the weather is significantly cooler than in Florida. However, the sheep will have no problem acclimating to Florida because they have hair instead of wool.

Basil Bactawar with the UF/IFAS Duval County Extension Service said "hair breeds" of sheep originated in Africa and were brought to the Caribbean Islands, Central America and South American during the 18th and 19th centuries.

"Hair sheep have some attributes that make them admirably suited to fill market niches or fit varying production systems in Florida," said Basil Bactawar.

Shearing is not a requirement thereby reducing operational cost, he said. Instead these sheep shed their winter coats during spring and early summer.

Additionally, they have a greater tolerance to parasites than the woolen breeds.

There's just one problem.

Katahdin sheep are generally more fertile in hot humid regions.

However, TECO is turning this one negative into a positive. The electric company has set up a live "lamb cam" at the Big Bend solar field in Apollo Beach so customers can tune in to TECO's Facebook page and watch the playful antics of the lambs born at the solar field.

"Rest assured, we will give the mama sheep her privacy and ensure everyone’s safety," said Jacobs.

The Lamb Cam will cease once lamb season is over in a few weeks.

Preparing a suitable environment for these eco-friendly landscapers did require some capital outlay. TECO had to build shelters for the sheep and set up watering and feeding stations. The company also recruited a team of experts to monitor the health of the sheep several times a week and installed fencing to keep out predators.

TECO is in the process of establishing solar plants throughout West Central Florida to provide electricity to its 750,000 customers. By 2021, TECO will have 7 percent of its energy generated from the sun, the highest percentage of any utility in the state.

And it stands to reason, the electric company will also have the highest percentage of sheep in the state.

In September, TECO activated its first two solar fields -- the Balm Solar in south Hillsborough County and the Payne Creek Solar in south Polk County.

In January, TECO added three more solar fields with 1.7 million solar panels -- the Lithia Solar, the Grange Hall Solar and the Bonnie Mine Solar. This marked the halfway point in the company's solar expansion project. These fields can produce enough energy to power 49,500 homes.

In all, TECO plans to have six million solar panels installed by 2021, enough to produce 600 megawatts of power.

Two more solar projects are scheduled to come online in the near future: Peace Creek and Lake Hancock, both in Polk County. The remaining projects will be completed in January 2020 and 2021.

"We are excited to see these projects come online," said Nancy Tower, president and chief executive officer of Tampa Electric. "Solar plants like these are a major part of our commitment to a clean energy future for Tampa Bay, and we're just getting started."

Video via TECO

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