Decommissioning old wind turbines generates thousands of tons of new waste

Wind turbines are usually decommissioned after 20–25 years, which is often the lifespan specified in contracts. Some wind turbines can operate for longer, but this depends on regulations, environmental factors and maintenance. Approximately 85 per cent of the parts in a wind turbine can be recycled or reused. The exception, however, is the blades. They are made from composite materials making them both lightweight and extremely strong. The downside is that their complex structure makes them difficult to recycle or reuse, which is why they usually end up in a landfill.

Shocking images from a municipal landfill site in Casper, Wyoming, USA triggered the alarm in 2020. The news and market data agency Bloomberg described the landfill site as a final resting place for wind turbine blades that “resemble bleached whale bones nestled against one another”. The problem is that tens of thousands of ageing onshore wind turbines will be decommissioned in a few years. Most would likely end up in landfill sites because they could not be recycled.

It’s now time for offshore wind turbines to be ready for decommissioning. The world’s first offshore wind farm, Vindeby in Denmark, opened in 1991. It has previously been estimated that approximately 1800 offshore wind turbines will be decommissioned in Europe over the next four years. By 2040, this figure could rise to almost 20,000. “The decommissioning and further processing of wind turbine blades is a real challenge,” said Marthe Michelsen Bottéri, communications manager at Havvind Norge. At present, thesechallenges primarily concern foreign and European wind farms. Norway’s first offshore wind farm, Hywind Tampen, only opened in 2023. The Sørlige Nordsjø II wind farm has been awarded, while Utsira Nord has been announced for tender. In addition, 20 other offshore wind areas are being assessed.

Source: Eurek Alert!