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Posted 27 Mar 2024

Updated 30 Mar 2024

2 min read

  • Report has been developed by Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) and Council on Energy, Environment, and Water (CEEW), under the NITI Aayog Action Plan for Circular Economy (CE) – Solar Panels
    • NITI Aayog has finalized 10 sectoral CE action plans for implementation by stakeholder ministries/departments. 

 

  • Need for Solar Waste Management:
    • India’s installed 66.7 GW capacity (FY23), has generated about 100 kilotonnes (kt) of waste, with cumulative waste increasing to 600 kt by 2030.
    • Solar waste contains:
      • Critical minerals such as silicon, copper, tellurium, and cadmium, whose recycling will reduce import dependency.
      • Toxic metals like lead and cadmium, which can contaminate water and soil and impact workforce health. 
      • Metals like silver and silicon, having high economic value with applications in manufacturing industries. 

 

  • Recommendations:
    • Maintain a comprehensive database of the installed solar capacity for accurate mapping of waste generation centres.
    • Solar cell and module producers should start developing waste collection and storage centres to adhere to the E-waste Management Rules 2022.
    • Promoting safe recycling of and recovery from solar waste.
    • Academia and industry should accelerate module recycling technology innovation.

 

Initiatives for Circular Economy in India’s Solar Energy Sector

  • Report on Circular Economy in Solar Panels to NITI Aayog
  • Solar PV cells made part of Electronic Waste (Management) Rules 2022
  • Solar PV recycling as priority thrust area under Renewable Energy Research and Technology Development (RE-RTD) Programme
  • Tags :
  • Waste Management
  • Solar Energy
  • Circular Economy
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