Further progress is needed from both technical and regulatory bodies to help address challenges and improve the recycling of materials from green energy technologies.
Key messages: Growing demand for green and renewable energy in the EU, combined with the vulnerability of supply chains for key raw materials, is driving the need to recover the materials used in green transition application (e.g. batteries and photovoltaic panels, etc.). This presents an opportunity to reduce the risk of downstream pollution from disposing of or recycling these items. While projects are investigating new processes for recycling materials from green energy technology, such means are not yet fully developed, leading to increasing waste volumes and a potential burden for future generations. Further progress is needed from both technical and regulatory bodies to help address challenges and improve the recycling of materials from green energy technologies.