Western Australia has joined the very slow march of state and federal governments acting to solve the problem of solar panel and battery recycling, with a $17.8 million spend on one of the most difficult aspects of renewable energy stewardship: waste collection.
The Cook Labor government on Wednesday announced a $13 million investment in the establishment of a new collection, transport, and processing pathways for end-of-life solar panels from both households and solar farms in the state.
A separate $3 million is being spent on the roll-out of “embedded battery collection” at local government facilities, while a further $1.8 million is being set aside to support the ongoing delivery of both programs.
The WA move follows the federal Labor government’s January launch of a $25 million pilot program to establish up to 100 solar panel collection sites across the country, spurred by an enormous amount of industry-led campaigning and off the back of a trial in Queensland.
At the same time, a federal parliamentary inquiry into solar stewardship is being conducted, following a referral from federal environment minister Murray Watt, and in February put out a call for written submissions to guide its terms of reference.
