The energy transition should make it possible to reduce greenhouse gases, but it will also lead to the appearance of new types of waste. In a study published Tuesday, Recyc-Québec wishes to stimulate reflection on the management of hundreds of thousands of tons of new materials that will eventually have to be recovered and reused.
Quebec must think now about the circular economy strategies that will be used in relation to the abundance of waste and end-of-life materials caused by the energy transition, according to Recyc-Québec.
The document published by the organization, entitled Materials of the energy transition: state of the situation and possible solutions, points out that the quantity of materials to be managed would increase from just over 4,000 tonnes in 2021 to 296,000 tonnes in 2050, i.e. around 70 times more. By 2030, approximately 142,000 tonnes of materials will come from the wind energy, solar energy, green hydrogen and electric mobility sectors. “If we approach the energy, ecological transition with the mentality of the linear economy, that is to say that we market, we use and we throw away, then we are moving away from our objective”, underlined the CEO of Recyc-Québec, Sonia Gagné, in an interview with The Canadian Press.
“The resource we use must become waste as late as possible and, when it is, we must find out how to dispose of it. So, you have to think about it now and thinking about it in advance. We have time to develop solutions that are acceptable, local, in a short loop,” explained Ms.me Won.
The “short loop” is a circular economy strategy that aims to favor local markets to reuse, repair, renovate or even recycle a product so that its life cycle is as long as possible. Conversely, the management of long-loop materials will favor the export of end-of-life products abroad, as is the case for large quantities of waste, such as certain plastics that are loaded onto boats to Asian countries, sometimes not knowing whether they will be burned, recycled or buried.
Wind power and electric mobility
According to the Recyc-Québec study, the two sectors where there will be more materials to manage in 2050 are wind power (approximately 49% of the 296,000 tonnes) and electric mobility (approximately 47%).
If we consider that the average lifespan of a wind turbine is between 20 and 25 years, a significant number of those installed in the first wind farms in Quebec in the early 2000s will reach the end of their life in the coming years. Recyc-Québec points out that the main obstacles to recycling wind turbines are related to the blades, because they are made of composite materials that are more difficult to recycle.
For electric mobility, in 2050, the sector’s terminals and batteries should generate 20 times more materials than currently, approximately the equivalent of the wind power sector, according to Recyc-Québec. Among the 296,000 tons of materials produced by the energy transition and which will have to be recycled in 2050, the organization has identified concrete, aluminum, ferrous metals, as well as various critical and strategic minerals.
But for the CEO of Recyc-Québec, a large part of the solution lies in eco-design. This principle, which consists of integrating environmental protection right from the design of a product, should be taken into account in calls for tenders. Among the obstacles to the proper management of transition materials, the organization’s report also mentions that “there is no [au Québec] incentives for manufacturers or a recyclability obligation pushing manufacturers to eco-design wind turbine components”.
According to the European Commission, 80% of the environmental and social impacts and 70% of the costs of products and services can be determined during design.