The number of wind turbines manufactured each year continues to grow, meaning the number of decommissioned wind bladed will also continue to grow. Yet, there is no method of dealing with the growing waste. Each year, 8,000 wind blades end up in our landfills, and following this trend, we will see 2 million tons of wind turbine waste in U.S. landfills alone by 2050.
Why Does This Matter?
Wind turbine blades will practically never degrade because of their resin and carbon fiber composition. On top of that, each blade can measure up to 351 feet (that’s a football field!). So with how things are going, we’ll be stuck with an ever-increasing amount of wind turbine waste as soon as 2050.
What About Recycling?
While recycling wind turbines reduces greenhouse gas emissions, they require massive amounts of water and energy, often making them more energy intensive than they are worth. It has also proven extremely difficult to handle wind turbines because of their sheer mass and size leading the blades to be left in rural communities in fields and on the sides of roads. Because recycling wind blades is labor-intensive and provides little return, companies have little incentive to invest in these processes.
Repurposing?
While repurposing wind turbines is more energy-efficient than recycling, finding a solid customer base for repurposed products is difficult. Because of this, repurposing attempts cannot meet the demand for the number of blades being decommissioned.
Attempts have been made to use wind turbine blades in structures such as parks and bridges. Still, even so, the number of wind blades being used in these structures does not even come close to meeting the demand for the number of blades being decommissioned. Because of this, repurposing, in its current state, does not provide a viable solution for the massive amount of waste that will be produced in the next 30 years.