Australia – The Clean Energy Council has expressed its dissatisfaction with the Federal Government’s attitude to solar panel waste.
As the peak body for the entire Australian solar industry, the Clean Energy Council has worked to develop a comprehensive, nationwide plan to address this issue over the past year.
However, the federal government has abandoned this collaboration and the Council’s efforts to coordinate a national approach to solar panel waste. It recently rejected a Clean Energy Council plan to establish an industry-led and self-funded product stewardship program with the goal of optimizing collection and increasing resource recovery rates to meet customer expectations and government standards by 2030.
“The Federal Government has indicated that it does not currently have resources or a clear plan to play any meaningful role in addressing this problem. As the Minister for the Environment herself admits, ‘solar panels have languished on the government’s priority list for six years now,” Clean Energy Council Chief Executive, Kane Thornton.
There are currently a number of competent Australian and worldwide enterprises with sound business strategies in place to create product recycling facilities across Australia, leveraging established technology and experience. The Australian solar sector is determined to meet this challenge, the Council concluded.
