Researchers say rising power costs are pushing some home owners to replace their solar panels prematurely, increasing the need for bespoke recycling facilities to avoid them going to waste.
Solar power is one of Australia’s most popular renewable energy sources, with more than 3.3 million homes having rooftop solar panels.
But a report by the International Energy Agency predicts solar panels will make up 145,000 tonnes of waste by 2030.
University of NSW researcher Rong Deng said more people were replacing solar panels earlier than necessary amid rising electricity costs.
“Most panels come with a manufacturer warranty of 25 to 30 years so when we first installed them we think the waste problem is too far away,” she said.
“But the thing is, with the current higher electricity price, more people are considering replacing the old, smaller system to a cheaper and bigger system.
“And that actually generates the first wave of the waste because we didn’t really expect it until 2030.”
Keeping older panels
Latrobe Valley Sustainability Group president Dan Caffrey lives in the backyard of Victoria’s coal-fired power station hub in Traralgon, and was one of the first in the state to install solar panels at his home in 2009.
Mr Caffrey was concerned about climate change and wanted to do something to reduce his reliance on fossil fuels being burnt in his region.
He said he had kept his original solar panels, which were still working order, and chose to add additional panels to prevent waste.
“I didn’t like the idea of waste … or of them ending their working lives when possibly they still had another 30 years,” Mr Caffrey said.
“I only needed nine new panels to get three times the amount of electricity as my original six panels.”
But Mr Caffrey said people needed to do their research to ensure they were purchasing good quality products.
“If you get quality [panels] you are able to keep that efficiency up,” he said.
“If people buy the cheap, crappy ones that are not properly authenticated, their efficiencies and longevity has not been proven, then you’re in trouble.”
Need for regulation
Dr Deng said standards or regulations needed to be in place to ensure only high-quality solar panels were able to be installed, and to make companies responsible for the afterlife of panels.
