News Highlights:
- Solar photovoltaic (PV) technology will play a critical role in India’s clean energy transition, but effective waste management strategies for this sector are still lacking.
- The International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) estimates that global PV waste will touch 78 million tonnes by 2050, with India being one of the top five PV waste creators.
Solar PV Waste:
- About:
- Solar wastes are electronic waste generated by discarded solar panels. They are sold as scraps in the country.
- It can increase by at least four-five-fold by the next decade.
- India should focus on drafting comprehensive rules to deal with solar waste.
- Status of Solar PV in India:
- India has the world’s fourth-highest solar PV deployment, and the installed solar capacity was nearly 62 GW in November 2022.
- A 2016 International Renewable Energy Agency report estimates that India could generate 50,000-3,25,000 tonnes of PV waste by 2030 and more than four million tonnes by 2050.
- Solar PV Technology in India:
- India’s solar PV installations are dominated by crystalline silicon (c-Si) technology, mainly consisting of a glass sheet, an aluminium frame, an encapsulant, a back sheet, copper wires, and silicon wafers.
- A typical PV panel comprises c-Si modules (93%) and cadmium telluride thin-film modules (7%).
- Solar waste handling in India:
- There was no commercial raw material recovery facility for solar e-waste operational in India, but a pilot facility for solar panel recycling and material recovery had been set up by a private company in Gummidipoondi, Chennai, Tamil Nadu.
- A committee was constituted under the chairmanship of the Ministry’s Secretary to propose an action plan to evolve a “circular economy” in solar panels through the reuse/recycling of waste generated.
- Solar panel waste harms the environment by containing toxic metals and minerals that may seep into the ground.
Hazards posed by PV waste:
- Environmental pollution:
- The accumulation of solar PV waste in landfills can lead to environmental pollution, as the waste contains hazardous materials such as lead, cadmium, and other toxic chemicals.
- Incinerating the encapsulate also releases sulphur dioxide, hydrogen fluoride, and hydrogen cyanide into the atmosphere.
- Health hazards:
- Improper handling and disposal of solar PV waste can lead to health hazards for workers and people near the disposal sites.
- The toxic chemicals in the waste can cause respiratory problems, skin irritation, and other health issues.
Challenges and solutions:
- Challenges:
- India’s challenge is the growing informal handling of PV waste.
- Only about 20% of the waste is generally recovered; the rest is treated informally.
- As a result, the waste often accumulates in landfills, which pollutes the surroundings.
- Incinerating the encapsulant also releases sulphur dioxide, hydrogen fluoride, and cyanide into the atmosphere.
- India must surmount significant collection, storage, recycling, and repurposing challenges.
- The market for repurposing or reusing recycled PV waste is minuscule in India due to a lack of suitable incentives and schemes in which businesses can invest.
- Solutions:
- India should formulate and implement provisions specific to PV waste treatment within the ambit of the e-waste guidelines.
- Central insurance or a regulatory body should be set up to protect against financial losses incurred in waste collection and treatment.
- Pan-India sensitisation drives and awareness programmes on PV waste management will be beneficial.
- Considering that India’s local solar PV-panel manufacturing is limited, we need to pay more attention to domestic R&D efforts.
Way forward:
- India needs to pay more attention to domestic R&D efforts as depending on a single module type will dis-uniformly deplete certain natural resources.
- It is important to boost the capacity for recycling and recovering critical materials.
Pic Courtesy: Freepik
Content Source: CEEW