On 14th November 2019, the panel discussion on Sustainable Photovoltaic Systems took place at the E-Waste World conference 2019. CIRCUSOL was represented by the coordinator and a partner. 

The moderator of the discussion, Nancy Gillis, CEO of Green Electronics Council, kicked off the panel discussion emphasising its focus. The topic of sustainable photovoltaics was discussed, Green Electronic Council and the EPEAT eco-label were introduced. Moreover, the 2020 launch of EPEAT PV & Inverter product category was announced.

Next on the programme, Andreas Wade, Global Sustainability Director at First Solar, discussed the participation in the process to develop EPEAT PV & Inverter product category criteria and highlighted specific criteria that make PV modules “sustainable”.

The European Commission was represented by Davide Polverini, Policy Officer at DG Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs, Clean Technologies and Products. He talked about EU sustainable PV systems initiative and status.

The coordinator of H2020 CIRCUSOL Tom Rommens explained the need for business models (based on PSS) that allow the transition from current linear to the circular solar power sector. Only a part of the solution is new recycling technologies and sustainable product design.

The CIRCUSOL partner Jan Clyncke, Managing Director of PV CYCLE, explained the difference between the “end of first use phase” and the “final end of used phase”, and how these concepts would influence waste management in the future. He stressed the need for a level playing field and the need for a consistent and continuous inspection by public authorities.

The list of speakers can be found here.