![]() ![]() These include mechanical grinding, pyrolysis, microwave pyrolysis, high-voltage pulse fragmentation, solvolysis and fluidised bed. They should increase funding on Research and Development (R+D) in the commercialisation and scale up of different blade recycling technologies. Governments can play a decisive role in driving the circularity of wind turbine blades. Towards the end of the decade Italy, France and Portugal will also start to significantly decommission blades and the annual decommissioned volume could double to 52,000 tonnes by 2030. Germany and Spain will see the highest number of decommissioned blades, followed by Denmark. WindEurope expects around 25,000 tonnes of blades to reach the end of their operational life annually by 2025. But it will increase over the coming years. The number of blades that have been decommissioned so far remains low. In Europe’s most mature markets for wind energy the first turbines are reaching the end of their operational life. From Spain we are sending a sign that the industry is committed to step up its efforts towards 100% circular wind turbine blades”, says Juan Virgilio Márquez, General Manager of Asociación Empresarial Eólica (AEE). The Spanish wind energy sector joins this initiative proposed by WindEurope. Spain is the second biggest market for wind energy Europe. Our commitment to end the landfilling of wind turbine blades by 2025 will help to make sustainable recycling methods commercially viable. Wind turbine blades are non-toxic and landfill safe but we believe landfilling is a waste of valuable resources. “As an industry we are determined to be at the forefront of sustainability and circularity. Making these technologies commercially viable will require commitment from policy makers, other composite users and the recycling industry. There are some technologies available to recycle the composite materials in blades, and an increasing number of companies offer composite recycling services, but these solutions are not yet mature enough, widely available at industrial scale and/or cost-competitive. They are important materials in sectors such as aviation, automotives, marine transport, aeronautics, leisure and sports equipment, construction and building. Such composites are not only used in wind turbine blades. But their configuration also poses challenges for recycling. They allow for lighter and longer blades with optimised aerodynamics. ![]() These composites boost the performance of wind turbines. They contain complex composite materials – a combination of reinforced fibres (usually glass or carbon fibres) and a polymer matrix. However, wind turbine blades are more challenging to recycle. Most of the components – including steel, cement, copper wire, electronics and gearing – have established recycling circles. 85-90% of the total mass of a wind turbine can already be recycled. Today the standard lifetime of an onshore wind farm is around 20-25 years. But we call upon the European Commission to propose a harmonised European approach”, says Giles Dickson, WindEurope CEO. Austria, Finland, Germany, and the Netherlands already have a landfill ban in place. A ban on landfilling wind turbine blades will help accelerate the development of sustainable recycling technologies. ![]() That’s why we are constantly striving to further reduce our impact on the environment. At the same time the industry commits not to send decommissioned blades from Europe to other countries outside of Europe for landfilling. With today’s call, the European wind industry actively commits to re-use, recycle, or recover 100% of decommissioned blades. The ban should enter into force by 2025 and also apply to other large composite components in the nacelles of modern wind turbines. A landfill ban would further accelerate the development of sustainable recycling technologies for composite materials.Īt the Spanish Wind Energy Association (AEE)’s Annual Congress Giles Dickson, CEO of WindEurope, and Juan Virgilio Márquez, General Director of AEE, today called upon the European Commission to propose a Europe-wide ban on landfilling decommissioned wind turbine blades. This comes after several industry-leading companies announced ambitious plans for blade recycling and recovery. Europe’s wind industry actively commits to re-use, recycle, or recover 100% of decommissioned blades. Today WindEurope called for a Europe-wide landfill ban on decommissioned wind turbine blades by 2025. Home / Newsroom / Press releases / Wind industry calls for Europe-wide ban on landfilling turbine bladesġ6 June 2021 Wind industry calls for Europe-wide ban on landfilling turbine blades ![]()
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