This article was written for CityChangers.org by Lukas Sloet, Policy Officer for Solar Energy, and Tabita Slimmens, Communications Specialist in Sustainability, both working for the City of Amsterdam. They explore the often-overlooked harmful implications of solar panels and how the Dutch city is addressing these problems through a shift towards circularity.
The Netherlands is working toward full climate neutrality by 2050. With the goal of contributing to the fight against climate change, renewable energy generation has been made a priority.
Initially, the Municipality of Amsterdam focused on maximising the number of solar panels installations. This led to a rapid rise in installations across the city, reaching 350 MWp by 2025.
While these earlier solar panels have an estimated lifespan of 30 years, factors have motivated many building owners to replace panels sooner – often in under ten years. These include factors such as a good solar subsidy climate, increased efficiency of newer generation panels, and the increasing electrification of households and businesses. With their original financial investment earned back, building owners increasingly opt for newer panels that have significantly higher energy output. This rapid replacement cycle underscores the need to prioritise not only the quantity but also the quality and sustainability of energy sources. The energy transition demands more than scaling up renewables.
Issues with Efficient Renewables
While replacing solar panels within ten years may be financially appealing for building owners, it undermines the potential CO2 savings of solar energy; the carbon footprint of producing panels becomes a significant concern.
Additionally, we have learned that carbon payback time – the time it takes for solar power to offset the carbon emissions generated by producing panels – increases as the share of renewables within a city’s energy mix grows. Which is the case for Amsterdam and the Netherlands as a whole.
In the Netherlands, the carbon payback time of newly installed solar panels can now sometimes exceed ten years – more than twice the average. We realised that it would be possible to cut this down by reusing old panels that have already repaid their carbon ‘debt’.
Some solar panels contain harmful substances like lead, antimony, and PFAS – long-lasting chemicals – or are manufactured in countries with high CO2 emissions due to reliance on fossil fuels. Moreover, valuable materials often end up in the shredder, leading to the unnecessary waste of scarce resources.
Increasing the Lifespan of Solar Panels: Our Successes and Ongoing Projects
As Amsterdam’s focus on the circular economy grew, we expanded our knowledge and shifted our approach to the circularity and sustainability of solar energy.
In a circular economy, the focus is on efficient and intelligent use of raw materials and products – moving from a culture of disposal to a take-make-use-reuse model.
We have made significant steps in recent years, by advocating for the long-term use and reuse of solar panels and actively working to establish a second-hand market. By doing so, we aim to reduce environmental impact and extend the lifespan of these materials.
To advance these goals, the Municipality of Amsterdam is collaborating with various partners, like ZonNext, to develop more sustainable and circular solar panels.
For example, we are busy setting up the Reuse Solar Europe project, which transfers used panels to Southern Europe where they can produce 1.5-2.5 times more energy because of higher solar irradiation (i.e. in sunnier climates).
Other key initiatives of the municipality of Amsterdam include:
- Introducing a sustainability label for solar manufacturers to encourage environmentally responsible production. The higher the label, the higher the Amsterdam Sustainable Solar subsidy residents and commercial projects are eligible for.
- Establishing a second-hand market to re-use solar panels on a local level to match the one at the European level.
- Collaborating with other cities and local government on new regulations for solar panel circularity.
- Advocating for better regulations on national and European level.
- Enhancing procurement criteria to prioritise sustainable solar solutions in municipal buildings and projects.
- Helping citizens purchase the highest-rated categories of sustainable solar panels with a new subsidy. Launched in August 2024, the higher the energy label of the purchased panel, the higher the subsidy provided.
- Training programs for young people to increase the amount of skilled solar professionals to address the shortage of people in the sector.
Circular Solar in a Nutshell
Municipalities play a pivotal role in this effort, not only in the implementation of solar energy projects but also in ensuring that these initiatives are equitable, sustainable, and circular.
In Amsterdam, we try to lead the way in sustainable solar energy, shifting from prioritising the quantity of solar panels to focusing on their circularity and sustainability. By addressing environmental concerns like harmful materials and carbon payback time, the city is promoting the long-term use and reuse of solar panels. Our efforts demonstrate that achieving a climate-neutral future requires not only expanding renewable energy but ensuring it is sustainable and circular.