Just as plans are being implemented for solar panel recycling, so too comes the need for battery recycling and repurposing programs. Lead-acid batteries already have established recycling programs, but lithium-ion batteries, which have dominated modern solar-plus-storage projects, currently do not and will soon need retirement plans of their own.
How can solar battery owners do the right thing? Responsible system owners should follow the “recycling mantra” as best they can:
- Reduce: Avoid over-scaling a system in an effort to accommodate future use and expansion. This will produce more waste to dispose of years later.
- Reuse: Repurpose what you can by selling used batteries to interested parties for second-life functions.
- Recycle: When nothing else can be done, recycle what is no longer needed, wanted or reusable.
This mantra is well-intentioned, but a mantra does not necessarily translate into meaningful action. Many energy storage managers do not formalize end-of-life recycling plans for their products since it’s not a personal concern. Recycling is “another person’s problem.” This attitude is discouraging.
The time for concern is now. Let’s explore how battery recycling works today, and how we can encourage more responsible solar-plus-storage end-of-life disposal practices.
Why is lead-acid battery recycling so common?
When consumers buy cars, they have paid for the lead in the car battery including, in effect, a future deposit when the battery is recycled. When they go to any lead-acid battery dealer to return a dead battery, the dealer will pay them up to $10. This consequently establishes a virtuous cycle, motivating battery owners to recycle their batteries. In Canada and the United States, lead-acid batteries have a 98 to 99% recycling rate because lead is infinitely recyclable without any degradation. It is the most recursively recycled material worldwide with 70% of all lead-acid batteries being made from recycled lead. Nearly every lead-acid battery component is recycled or made into useful products, including the plastics, sulfuric acid and copper.