Solar panels gaein tae landfill while Labor’s $25m recyclin scheme is on haud

Recyclin operators hae expeirit growin alarm about delays tae a solar panel recyclin scheme promised by the Albanese govrenment, wi fears some cud gang bust whilst they wait.

The $25m pilot scheme wis announcit in Januar tae help develop a local industry for the recyclin o panels an the recovery o vailie material such as copper an aluminium.

A process tae appoint an entity tae run the pilot wis suspendit in Mey efter an undisclosed complaint. The scheme hid been due tae commence mid-year.

Fower months on, aicht solar recyclin companies hae written tae several ministers tae urge the govrenment tae lift the suspension.

Their concerns follae the govrenment’s recent decision tae shelve plans for mandatory national packagin standards.

The companies said the prolangit delay threatent the financial viability o operators in the emergin solar recyclin industry an hinderit Australia’s ability tae recover high-purity critical materials.

They wrote that every month o delay exacerbates the volume o solar waste enterin landfills, damagin public trust in renewable energy infrastructure.

James Petesic, ane o the letter’s signatories, is the co-foonder o solar panel recycler PV Industries, whilk has facilities in Sydney an Melbourne.

He said there hid been little communication or clarity about the pilot’s future since the federal Department o Climate Change, Energy, the Environment an Watter suspendit the procurement process in Mey.

The mair time gaes on, the mair panels are comin aff roofs, he said.

An the mair we risk losin recyclin capacity acause mair businesses will gang intae administration.

Petesic said the ongaein delay wis affectin investor certainty in the industry.

The letter urges the govrenment tae uise a public interest provision in procurement laws tae lift the suspension, sae that the pilot can still progress whilst the complaint is investigatit.

Petesic said ane o the biggest issues for the nascent industry wis supply o solar panels. About ane in three Australians hae rooftop solar but maist rooftop panels are nae recyclit at the end o their life.

Recyclers hae strugglit tae secure enough panels, wi mony endin up in landfill or waste stockpiles. Victoria is the only state wi an outricht ban on solar panels gaein tae rubbish dumps, though some landfill sites in ither jurisdictions also refuse tae accept them.

Petesic said as hooseholds installit hame batteries, mony were choosin tae upgrade their solar panels at the same time, increasin the volume o panels that were becomin waste.

He said the goals o the pilot scheme were tae support transport o panels tae recyclers, guarantee supply o panels for recyclin an help the solar recyclin industry tae grow.

The pilot wis also intendit tae inform development o a mandatory national solar panel recyclin scheme.

The chief executive o the Australian Council o Recyclin, Suzanne Toumbourou, said the delay wad hae knock-on effects for folk wha hid investit in solar recyclin.

There has been absolutely nae clarity about the nature o the complaint that has held this process up indefinitely, whilk means the sector has nae concept o whit the way forrit looks like, she said.

Investment confidence has already been shakin by the delay itsel but the indefinite nature o it amplifies that.

A department spokesperson said the govrenment remains committit tae the policy objectives o the national solar panel recyclin pilot.

They said the appointment process remainit suspendit in accordance wi the govrenment’s procurement rules.

Gayle Sloan, the CEO o the Waste Management an Resource Recovery Association, said instead o the pilot scheme the govrenment shud introduce national regulations that made producers o solar panels responsible for whit happent tae them, whether that wis repair, reuse or recyclin.

We dinnae need mair trials. We need regulation that places the responsibility squarely on producers, she said.