Experts from VenhoevenCS, DS Landschapsarchitecten and Studio Solarix have developed an artificial «web» that will be stretched over a busy highway like a bridge for insects. It looks like a membrane made of solar panels. The function of such a «web» is to provide quieter air over the highway and thus create normal conditions for insects to cross it.
Studies have shown that many pollinating insects can cross a busy road only when the air above it is motionless, there are no strong swirls and airflows above the road. And this rarely happens over the highway, along which thousands of cars pass every day.
Due to an obstacle in the form of a motorway, flying insects cannot reach the flowering plants, thus the quality of pollination decreases. As a result, fewer fruits are formed. Consequently, not only insects, but also people who get less harvest, suffer from such a negative impact of the highway.
This project was created especially for the motorway in North Brabant. But the developers say that artificial membranes can be installed over other roads that create obstacles for flying pollinating insects.
New membrane not only makes it easier for insects to fly over the motorway, but also generates electricity using sun rays. That is, the invention is useful both for arthropods and for humans, while the artificial «web» does not harm the environment in any way. In the future, it is possible to make such membranes from special fabrics that generate electricity.
It is hard to overestimate this invention, because the valuable food products that plants give us cannot be obtained without high-quality pollination, which is done by butterflies, bees, bumblebees and many other insects. All that makes us applaud the Dutch, who show such concern for nature and do not forget about pollinators, which play an important role in the life of the entire planet.
