A new program has kicked off in the USA to help ensure millions of solar panels installed across the country don’t ultimately wind up in landfills.
In partnership with major solar manufacturers and installer-developers, the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) is working to set up network of cost-effective recyclers to manage PV waste and end-of-life disposal of solar panels.
“Our goal is make the entire solar industry landfill-free,” said Tom Kimbis, SEIA’s interim president; who also stated the initiative would reduce the costs of recycling for all those involved.
” This means the environment wins and so do our solar consumers and companies.”
The program will also provide a portal for system owners to learn how to responsibly recycle their solar power systems.
“With the goal of creating a long-term global circular economy, we’re not just thinking about how to take back and recycle PV – we’re thinking about how to repurpose its components into new products for a better future,” states the SEIA.
In Europe, a program is already in place called PV CYCLE; which has been operating since 2010. According to PV-Cycle’s 2015 annual report, more than 2,800 tonnes of PV module waste was treated last year – 33% more than in 2014. In total, approximately 13,300 tonnes of PV waste had been handled by the PV CYCLE network by the end of 2015.
The issue of solar panel recycling is also a significant one for Australia. There are tens of millions of PV modules installed throughout the nation and while solar panels have a serviceable life of decades, something will need be done reasonably soon to ensure decommissioned panels don’t wind up in our landfills in the years ahead.
There is (literally) a silver lining and good motivation for PV recycling. More than 90% of a module’s weight can be recycled into more solar panels or other items as the aluminium, glass, silicon, silver and other materials can be reclaimed.
Solar panel recycling isn’t just about tree-hugging warm and fuzzies; it will evolved into a lucrative business. A report released in June estimates the value of the recovered material could exceed USD $ 15 billion by 2050. The potential influx of materials could produce 2 billion new solar modules.
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