The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has issued a notice to the Central government regarding the safe disposal of damaged solar panels, highlighting the lack of proper infrastructure for recycling photovoltaic (PV) panels. It has come to light that users of solar panels, particularly those who purchased them over a decade ago or received them under government schemes like Kusum Yojana, are uncertain about where to dispose of their old or damaged panels. Without proper disposal methods, these panels are often buried in agricultural fields or sent to landfills, leading to soil contamination.
The NGT bench, led by Justice Prakash Shrivastava and Dr. A. Senthil Vel, has directed the Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, the Central Pollution Control Board, the Uttar Pradesh Pollution Control Board, and the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy to respond to the issue by February 10, 2025. The Tribunal also pointed out that a similar issue concerning electronic waste (e-waste) management is pending before the court. The notice follows a letter petition by Ashish Singh Chandel, a farmer from Kanpur, who raised concerns about the environmental risks of improper disposal and recycling of PV panels.
The NGT’s order addressed issues such as the limited scrap value of PV panels and the environmental hazards posed by landfills. Scrap dealers typically only accept recyclable materials like aluminium, copper, and glass, while the remaining components, such as polymers, silicon, and heavy metals like lead and cadmium, are non-recyclable and pose a significant environmental threat. Ajay Mathur, Director General of the International Solar Alliance, acknowledged the challenge of recycling older solar panel technology, noting that current panels are difficult to recycle due to differences in materials used in modern and older models.
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