Yeah But… Solar Panels All End Up in Landfill

This is the fourth in my “Yeah But…” series - where I unpack common and misleading arguments used to distract and dismiss climate action.

So far, we’ve covered:

• Yeah But… It’s Made in China

• Yeah But… It’s Made With Fossil Fuels

• Yeah But… What About Lithium Mining?

Now let’s take on another favourite of the climate-denialist crowd:

“Yeah but… all the solar panels are ending up in landfill.”

Waste is a legitmate concern. And we should definitely avoid creating new problems while solving existing ones. But this line is almost always used to undermine clean energy as a whole - and that’s where it falls apart. So let’s get the facts straight.

1. Most solar panels haven’t even reached end-of-life yet.

Solar panels last 25 to 30 years, and Australia’s rooftop solar boom really only began around 2010. That means the bulk of panels won’t reach the end of their lifespan until the late 2030s and 2040s. The “tsunami of solar waste” you might’ve heard about? It’s not here yet and we have time to plan for it.

2. Solar panels can be recycled - and the industry is gearing up.

Recycling of solar panels is already happening. In Australia, companies like Reclaim PV are recovering over 90% of the materials - including glass, aluminium, silver, and silicon. They’re valuable so worth the effort!

Globally, recycling technologies are advancing fast, and as the volume of retired panels grows, the economics will improve. Compare that to coal: you burn it once and it needs digging up again. There's no recycling of fossil fuels. Just pollution.

3. Solar waste is real - but tiny compared to fossil fuel waste.

Let’s put things in perspective:

• One solar panel creates a bit of waste once every 30 years.

• Fossil fuels create millions of tonnes of CO₂, toxic ash, heavy metals, and air pollution every single day.

Worrying about solar waste while ignoring the vast, permanent damage of fossil fuel combustion is like worrying about banana skins while an oil tanker spills in the background.

4. If anything, solar waste is a reason to accelerate the transition.

Why? Because the faster we shift to clean energy, the faster we can:

• Improve recycling systems

• Design better, longer-lasting panels

• Build a circular economy for clean tech

• Ditch fossil fuels, which leave nothing behind but damage.

We’re in a transition - and that means improving things as we go, not waiting for perfection before we start.

Bottom line:

Solar panel waste is a challenge - but it’s manageable, solvable, and tiny compared to the mountain of waste left behind by coal, gas, and oil.

We should build good systems to recover, reuse, and recycle solar materials. But don’t let fossil fuel dinosaurs pretend that landfill is the biggest threat facing humanity. The real waste is burning fossil fuels every day, knowing full well what it’s doing to our climate.

I thought “Yeah But … the climate’s always been changing” could be next in my series. What do you think? Share your thoughts below.