US-Australia energy partnership a means to break away from Chinese dominance

In a move to break away from Chinese dominance, the US and Australia recently announced a “Net zero technology acceleration partnership”. The countries signed the agreement with an aim to diversify their energy sources, not depend on a single source of fuel.

The Chinese have been able to spread their comparatively cheaper solar panels in every corner of the world. This started as an attempt to reduce Chinese dependence on foreign energy in the late 2000s.

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Now, it is believed that China has the largest investment in renewable energy with the Chinese manufacturers responsible for supplying nearly 80 per cent of solar panels.

It has been estimated that by 2030, the country will be able to manufacture and supply up to 95 per cent of the global demand of solar panels.

Solar waste generation

However, the constant technology change in Solar, will generate an estimated six million metric tons of solar waste annually due to premature disposal of panels.

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Once decommissioned, these panels are left to rest in landfills because it takes approximately $15–$45 to recycle the module while it takes only $1–$5 to dump it.

According to a report, though solar recycling facilities operating at certain places choose to extract minerals like silver or copper from the panels, they end up burning contaminated glasses etc., and polluting the very fragile environment it was anticipated to cleanse.