Make Carbon to Save Carbon: The Environmental Cost of Going Solar

The environmental benefits of going solar.

The potential threats associated with climate change and the environmental impact from non-renewable energy sources are well known. Global warming is the result of CO2 and other greenhouse gases being released and trapped in the atmosphere. These pollutants trap heat which is causing the Earth’s temperature to rise and is resulting in warming oceans,  shrinking ice sheets, rising sea levels and ocean acidification. It comes without saying that we need to work together to decrease these CO2 and greenhouse gas emissions.

Renewable energy sources such as Solar tend to be advertised as a solution to global warming because they do not produce toxic pollutants or C02 emissions while generating energy. Although no CO2 is produced through the generation of energy from the solar panels themselves, we must also consider the environmental impact of their manufacturing, transportation, implementation and deconstruction processes. Just as it costs money to make money, you have to make some CO2 to save more!

The manufacturing process

The most often cited report comes from Vattenfall's life cycle studies of electricity in 1999 which shows that solar tends to produce 50g of CO2 per kWh compared to the 975g of CO2 per kWh produced from Coal. Solar panels are therefore at least 20x better kWh for kWh. It is worth noting that this study only looked at 3 countries -- Japan, Sweden and Finland which tend to have lower yearly hours of sunlight.  The study also does not account for recent advances in panel efficiency over the years so the efficiency of solar is actually probably much higher.  The carbon footprint of solar panel production will also vary widely depending on where they are produced and when compared to that location's main energy source.  For example the carbon footprint of a solar panel produced in China where coal is often used, could be almost twice that of a panel produced in Europe.

Despite the energy costs of producing panels, most solar cells pay back the initial energy invested in their manufacturing within 2-3 years. Considering a standard solar panel’s lifespan is approx. 30 years, the clean energy that these panels produce far outweighs the energy required to manufacture them!

The Deconstruction Process

Solar panels currently have a lifespan of around 30 years but what happens then? Do your panels just end up in the garbage dump? Did you know that 90% of solar panels are recyclable? The field of solar recycling is being developed rapidly and continues to be optimized as we speak.  In addition to the development of solar recycling programs across the world, the development of a used panel market is also being explored.

Recycling of panels

Sunly obtains panels from Canadian Solar who became a member of the SEIA PV recycling program in 2016.  Many of SEIA’s solar manufacturers and developers –including Canadian Solar, are working together to create a network of recyclers who can properly handle PV waste and ensure waste is not sent to landfills. The EU seems to be leading the way for these processes and hopefully Canada will be not too far behind. 

Our goal at Sunly is to minimize all potentially harmful emissions and effects on the environment and to maximize those activities that have a positive impact. Sunly receives its panels from Canadian Solar who provides transparent information about their manufacturing process. You can find out more through Canadian Solar’s sustainability report HERE!

While the current solar recycling market in PEI is less developed, PEI is still relatively a young player in the solar community so we have a chance to develop strong recycling programs well before the panels installed today need to be recycled.  

Sunly is committed to being active in advancing the solar industry in PEI and is always working with local partners to advance the solar community.  We were the first to require that 100% of our installs to have critter guard.  Recently that action has resulted in this becoming a requirement across the entire solar industry in PEI.  You can rest assured that we will also be an active player in advancing solar recycling initiatives in the region as well.

 The future's looking brighter than ever!