The NSW government is consulting on Australia’s first mandatory solar panel recycling scheme to ensure valuable solar panel materials are recovered, reused and recycled rather than sent to landfill.
The proposed regulation is designed to drive investment and jobs in the solar recycling industry, supporting the potential development of a solar panel remanufacturing industry in the state.
Minister for the Environment Penny Sharpe said, ‘NSW has embraced rooftop solar, and now we’re making sure those panels don’t become tomorrow’s landfill problem. Solar panels contain valuable materials that can be recovered and put back to work.
‘A mandatory product stewardship scheme can help build a circular economy for solar panels, while supporting new recycling and manufacturing opportunities here in NSW.’
NSW currently leads the nation in solar uptake, with more than 1.18 million rooftop solar systems across homes, businesses, schools and community facilities. As these systems age, increasing numbers of solar panels are ending up in landfill.
Around 14,000 tonnes of solar panel waste is generated in NSW each year. This is predicted to increase to 89,000 tonnes by 2045.
The proposed mandatory product stewardship scheme would require solar panel brand owners to take responsibility for the end-of-life management of their products, helping fund collection, recycling and resource recovery across NSW.
Win win
Recycling solar panels isn’t simply about reducing waste. It is also about capturing valuable resources and creating new economic opportunities.
Valuable materials such as aluminium, glass, silicon, copper and silver can be recovered and reused in new products and manufacturing industries. As larger volumes of materials are recovered, NSW will be better placed to build local supply chains, strengthen manufacturing capability, encourage innovation and create skilled jobs across the state.
The NSW government has released an issues paper alongside the draft regulation, seeking feedback on how the state can support the growth of solar panel recycling, remanufacturing and manufacturing industries.
Consultation will seek views from unions, industry, recyclers, manufacturers, researchers, local government, workers and the community on the opportunities, challenges and investment needed to build a circular economy for solar panels in NSW.
Feedback will inform the design of the mandatory product stewardship scheme with the aim of establishing a system that reduces waste, recovers valuable resources and positions NSW as a leader in solar panel recycling and circular manufacturing.
Submissions on the draft regulation and issues paper are now open. Visit this link for more information and to have your say: https://yoursay.epa.nsw.gov.au/solar.
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