The Looming Disaster of Waste Generation From Solar Panels

Global warming predictions have steadily seeped through from classroom discourses and textbook pages to the realm of reality. The world has resorted to deploying green energy production practices for energy generation to reduce the burden on the rapidly depleting fossil fuel levels. Solar energy constitutes one of the major pillars of green energy and is harnessed by installing solar panels consisting of photovoltaic (PV) cells. PV cells are essentially made from silicon ( Si ), silver ( Ag ) and indium ( In ), along with copper ( Cu ) and aluminium ( Al ), among other elements. The average life of a PV cell is 25 years, which has started culminating in their end in panels which were instituted when solar technology was introduced initially and was a relatively new concept. The solar panels now being phased out are the ones which have either reached their life’s end or were damaged in the course of use and not managed in an organized way. The constituent elements building these cells are not extracted diligently before shredding these panels and transporting them for disposal indicating poor end-of- life management of PV cells. This happens mainly due to the expensive process of extracting the metals from the used-up cell residue and the absence of an efficient method to do so. Since these PV cells are then transported for disposal to landfill sites, the cell residue ends up contaminating the land which leads to the creation of a solar energy – power generation/waste contamination paradox. The waste generated from PV cells was estimated at 2,50,000 metric tonnes in 2016 globally by International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), and this waste is estimated to reach levels of 9.57 million tonnes by 2050. The National Resource Efficiency Policy, 2019 (NREP) Bill has been drafted to address the issue but has not been given statutory power yet. The E-Waste (Management) Rules, 2022, were enforced from April 2023 and tried to address all the relevant issues pertaining to this menace. This chapter shall seek to enforce the importance of the effective implementation of relevant legislative provisions and design intervention strategies which aim to foster a proper recycling channel for PV cells, incorporate the recycled material within the production process itself and reduce pollution caused from the PV cell waste residue, thus aiding in the establishment and maintenance of a sectoral circular economy and taking a step towards a sustainable future.