The solar market has expanded considerably in Australia in recent years, sparked by a reaction to rising energy prices and as a popular choice for tackling climate change. This rapid rise of rooftop solar panels, along with battery storage equipment has, however, spurred certain concerns about what will actually happen to these materials once they reach their end of life. 

Clearly, the rise of solar and storage is a positive movement in Australia and a positive sign of the transition towards low carbon energy generation. Energy experts, however, have started to raise concerns that if waste production is not taken seriously now, aging solar and battery equipment could potentially generate a colossal amount of hazardous waste for the nation over the coming years. Research published in the Journal of Cleaner Production explores the challenges facing the management of solar panel waste and how to manage this process.

The Lifespan of a solar panel

Solar PV panels roughly last twenty years and the popular lithium-ion battery, which is a preferred choice for battery storage has a lifespan ranging from five to fifteen years. Many solar panels have reached their end, but what is more concerning, is the potential level of battery waste that will start to appear in the coming years. It is predicted that by 2050 the levels of solar panel waste in Australia could reach a figure of over 1,500 kilo tonnes (kT).

Both solar and battery equipment contain valuable metals, glass and other materials such as ruthenium, indium, tellurium, lead, and lithium. Creating provisions to effectively recycle these products should be addressed as it will greatly reduce the environmental and human health implications, as well as save resources for future consumption.

National Responsibility

In Australia, the Product Stewardship Act focuses on delivering a system of shared responsibility for people or businesses who create, sell and use products. The act intends to ensure products have little or no impact on the environment or people when it reaches the end of its life. Back in 2016, solar systems were included in a priority list as a major consideration. This involved a detailed analysis of the several pathways within the industry, in order to manage the overall waste streams from solar.

Sustainability Victoria, with support from regional governments, is heading up a national investigation into creating a system of shared responsibility for the end of life of solar PV systems across the nation. In order for the product stewardship scheme to really be a success, it will need the full participation of the national solar industry and other relevant stakeholders. A proposed scheme and stewardship approach is planned to be presented to environmental ministers in the coming year, with an implementation plan set for the beginning of 2020.

Updates to the National Waste Policy

Government ministers recently confirmed changes to the National Waste Policy and the incorporation of the core principles of a circular economy. This translates into a reduction of the consumption of virgin raw materials, increasing product life, improving material maintenance, product reuse and a focus on renewable energy generation.

At present companies across Australia are provided with very little incentive to enhance recycling rates. Introducing circular business models will result in higher recycling levels and longer product lifetimes. It is a clearly beneficial move for the environment and economy, ensuring manufacturers, importers or distributors can source solar panels and batteries that have been created with the environment in mind. By supporting this process, recyclers will be capable of recovering more materials and generate higher recirculation rates of recovery.

Recycling management in Australia

With China no longer accepting recycling waste, Australia is faced with an urgent need to accelerate its domestic recycling plans. An emerging domestic recycling market would generate new jobs and support the green economy of Australia. Environmental experts are concerned whether the Australian recycling industry is capable of dealing with complex waste materials such as solar PV and battery waste. At present, the nation is finding it challenging to manage the recycling of simple waste products and currently has little capacity to recycle solar panels and batteries.

Australia continues to export nearly half of their scrap metal for overseas processing, which is a possible indicator of the lack of incentives provided for the existing domestic recycling market. Enhancing the domestic recycling services for solar and batteries will be challenging if landfill continues to remain a low-cost option for waste disposal. Enhancing the focus on solar and battery waste will require a significant commitment from both policymakers and the industries combined, with a priority focused on reusing and improving materials before actually having to recycle.

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