Made from carbon fibre, they are difficult to break down, but in UK and elsewhere in Europe there are plans to tackle the waste
In the Scottish port town of Irvine in Aryshire, almost 80 of Britain’s oldest wind turbine blades lie disused in an old warehouse.
Thirty years ago they towered 55 metres above the South Lanarkshire countryside, powering Scotland’s first commercial windfarm at Hagshaw Hill. Today, they wait for a green energy breakthrough of another kind: blade recycling.
Where they once stood, a clutch of 14 newer turbines have taken their place. They are larger, more powerful, and will generate five times more green electricity than the originals while taking up less space.
Elsewhere in Europe, similar plans to “repower” the continent’s oldest windfarms with more efficient turbines and more powerful blades are under way, increasing clean power generation. However, this green revolution brings a fresh sustainability challenge for the industry as companies consider what to do with the thousands of obsolete older models.
