Solar panel installation rising sans proper disposal policy
Bangladesh is set to see a rising volume of waste from solar photo-voltaic panels in the coming years, which in the absence of absence of proper disposal and management pose risks to the environment and humans.
By 2041, the country will produce more than 0.748 million tonnes of solar e-waste and by 2061 0.797 million tonnes, according to a paper of the electrical and electronic engineering department of the Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET).
“Thus, it is critical to handle the disposal of PV waste that is generated at the end of life of PV solar modules,” it said.
The challenge becomes apparent as the lifetime of a portion of solar panels will end within the next couple of years, and the government is yet to frame any policy or rule to ensure proper management and disposal of the panels.
“It is a matter of concern and we should take steps in advance to ensure proper management of solar panels before they become obsolete,” said Md Ziaur Rahman Khan, a professor of EEE at the BUET and co-author of the paper.
Bangladesh started installing Solar Home Systems (SHS) two decades ago with the objective of lightening homes in off-grid areas by harnessing renewable sources for electricity. Since then, the coverage of SHS has expanded.
SHSs are now providing lights to about 60 lakh homes and until now panels with capacity to produce 370 megawatt of electricity have been installed, according to the Sustainable & Renewable Energy Development Authority (Sreda).
Solar panels are used to run irrigation pumps, establish mini-electricity grid and solar power plants.
They are also installed on rooftops of building and factories and the government is exploring the scope to establish floating solar power plants on water bodies.
Since power generation by using solar panels is increasing, so will the volume of obsolete PV panels, said a paper titled “End-of-Life Management of Photovoltaic Modules in Bangladesh.
“Growing PV panel waste presents a new environmental challenge but also unprecedented opportunities to pursue new economic avenues,” said the paper, which was authored by a group of students and faculties of the EEE department at the BUET.
The paper, co-authored by Khan, Kimia Tasnia, Shajnaj Begum and Zarin Tasnim, was published last year.
Although currently produced PV panels will have a useful lifetime of almost 20 years, inevitable waste is created when the panels become obsolete, the paper said. Solar panels installed in Bangladesh have a maximum 25-year lifetime.
“As Bangladesh is a densely populated country, there won’t be space for enough landfills for proper disposition of this huge amount of PV waste, and with the passage of the time these wastes may produce harmful effects on human and environment,” the paper said.
PV cells contain certain amount of toxic substances that would truly become a problem for environmental safety. Besides, some solar panels contain rare earth materials such as gallium and indium.
Their loss through careless solar panel disposal could result in permanent deficiency of these substances in the future. Recycling help conserve the supplies of the finite resources, the paper said.
Growing PV panel waste presents a new environmental challenge, but also unprecedented opportunities to create value and pursue new economic avenues, the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) and the International Energy Agency Photovoltaic Power Systems (IEA-PVPS) said in a publication in 2016.
These include recovery of raw material and the emergence of new solar PV end of life industries.
Sectors like PV recycling will be essential in the world’s transition to a sustainable, economically viable and increasingly renewables-based energy future, it said. By 2050, the recoverable value could cumulatively exceed $15 billion, the publication said.
From the available data, it is found that proper PV-waste management can unlock a large stock of raw materials and other valuable components.
“Proper management and recycling can at a time protect our environment from being polluted by PV waste. It will also support considerable economic value creation by adding financial support to our economy,” the BUET paper said.
The US, the EU, Germany and the UK have policies on recycling of PVs.
In Bangladesh, the Department of Environment (DoE) has finalised a draft rule for proper management of electronic waste (e-waste). The rules are expected to be published soon.
The rules have not included the disposal issue of solar PV wastes, Mirza Shawkat Ali, director for climate change & international convention at the DoE, told The Daily Star earlier.
“We have this in our mind, but we have not taken any step on recycling of solar panels,” said Mahmood Malik, executive director and CEO of Infrastructure Development Company Ltd (IDCOL).
The state-run financial institution started providing support for SHS in 2003 and the programme reached its peak after 2010.
“As far I as know, we have discussed the issue on several occasions. But we have not found a solution to implement. We will examine what advanced countries have done and maybe we will follow that,” Malik said.
“We have time in hand but we should take steps beforehand instead of at the last moment.”
IDCOL, which has started recycling battery, is investing for recycling plant and is giving incentive to users so that they sell batteries to proper channel instead of selling them to stores, he added. The Sreda has prepared a draft guideline for disposal of solar panels, said Md Helal Uddin, chairman of the agency.
A number of items, including aluminium of obsolete solar panels could be reused and recycled, said Dipal Barua, president of the Bangladesh Solar and Renewable Energy Association.
The Sreda can frame a policy for disposal by involving all stakeholders, including the private sector, he added.