Researchers at Columbia University Law School Addressed this well in their paper: “Rebutting 33 False Claims About Solar, Wind, and Electric Vehicles“. Here’s what they had to say:
The amount of waste that solar panels are expected to generate over the next few decades is trivial compared to the amount of waste that will be generated by fossil fuels. A study published in Nature Physics in October 2023 found that “35 years of cumulative PV module waste (2016-2050) is dwarfed by the waste generated by fossil fuel energy and other
common waste streams.” Specifically, the study found that “if we do not decarbonize and transition to renewable energy sources, coal ash and oily sludge waste generated by fossil fuel energy would be 300-800 times and 2-5 times larger [in mass], respectively, than PV module waste.”
Source: The Sabin Center for Climate Change Law (visualizing data from
Heather Mirletz et al.) .
In addition, although only about 10% to 15% of solar panels are recycled in the United States, the U.S. Department of Energy has awarded funding under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act for additional research and development for solar technology recycling. A 2024 study on solar PV recycling concluded that “PV recycling will reduce waste, and CO2 emissions, while contributing to a sustainable environment,” and that “[i]t is expected that the research for efficient PV recycling strategies will accelerate as the PV industry grows and as many more organizations and government work towards a sustainable future.”
Already, some companies have been able to recover 90% of solar panels’ mass in their recycling processes. One commercial recycling plant in France can recycle more than 95% of a solar module. Bulk materials such as glass, steel, and aluminum are recoverable through existing recycling lines, while certain semiconductor materials (tellurium and
cadmium) can also be recovered at very high rates of 95% to 97%. Valuable materials in the panels, including silver, copper, and crystalline silicon, are actively sought for the development of other products, including the next generation of solar panels. In addition, new companies are emerging with innovative technologies to recycle solar panels.
Resources
Heather Mirletz et al., Unfounded concerns about photovoltaic module toxicity and waste are slowing decarbonization , NATURE PHYSICS, October 2023, https://www.nature.com/articles/s41567-023-02230-0.
Allyson Chu, Scientists found a solution to recycle solar panels in your kitchen, WASH. POST (Jul. 5, 2023), https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-solutions/2023/07/05/solar-panel-recycling-microwave-technology/#.
Solar Recycling Research & Development , OFFICE OF ENERGY EFFICIENCY & RENEWABLE ENERGY, DEP’T OF ENERGY, https://www.energy.gov/eere/solar-recycling-research-development.
Zita Ngagoum Ndalloka et al., Solar photovoltaic recycling strategies, 270 Solar Energy 112379 (March 2024), at 9-10, https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0038092X24000732.
M.M. Aman, et al., A review of Safety, Health and Environmental (SHE) issues of solar energy system , 41 RENEWABLE AND SUSTAINABLE ENERGY REVIEWS 1190 (2015), https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rser.2014.08.086.
Rong Deng et al., Recent progress in silicon photovoltaic module recycling processes, 187 RESOURCES, CONSERVATION AND RECYCLING
106612 (2022), at 10, https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0921344922004463.
Garvin A. Heath, Research and Development Priorities for Silicon Photovoltaic Module Recycling to Support a Circular Economy, 5 NATURE ENERGY 502, 503 (2020), https://doi.org/10.1038/s41560-020-0645-2.
Md. Shahariar Chowdhury et al., An overview of solar photovoltaic panels’ end-of-life material recycling , 27 ENERGY STRAT. REVIEWS 100431, 100437 (2020), https://doi.org/10.1016/j.esr.2019.100431.
U.S. DEP’T OF ENERGY, OFFICE OF ENERGY EFFICIENCY & RENEWABLE ENERGY, SOLAR ENERGY TECHNOLOGIES OFFICE, PHOTOVOLTAICS END-OF-LIFE ACTION PLAN 11 (2022), https://www.energy.gov/sites/default/files/2023-10/SETO-PV-End-of-Life-Action-Plan-1.pdf.
Jon Hurdle, As Millions of Solar Panels Age Out, Recyclers Hope to Cash In , YALE ENV’T. 360 (Feb. 28, 2023), https://e360.yale.edu/features/solar-energy-panels-recycling.