'A punitive tax': Alberta to impose $14 solar recycling fee, as industry group warns of $1M hit to projects

Advertisement 1 This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Breadcrumb Trail Links HomeNewsLocal News 'A punitive tax': Alberta to impose $14 solar recycling fee, as industry group warns of $1M hit to projects Business Renewables Centre-Canada director says fee is five times higher than next highest country's solar recycling fee Author of the article: By Noah Brennan Published Sep 04, 2026 3 minute read Join the conversation A Calgary-area solar farm was photographed on Friday, September 4, 2026 just after the province announced there will be a fee to recycle the panels and they can no longer be taken to the landfill Brent Calver/Postmedia Article content Alberta will ban solar panels from landfills and impose a $14 recycling fee on every new panel supplied in the province beginning Oct. 1, launching what the province calls the first recycling program of its kind in Canada. Article content The program will ensure panels are diverted from landfills and recycled at the end of their useful lives, the province says, while supporting an emerging recycling industry and shielding taxpayers from future cleanup costs. Article content Article content Article content “We will not wait until mountains of dead solar panels are piling up in our landfills before acting,” Environment and Protected Areas Minister Grant Hunter said in a news release. “We are putting the system in place now to recover valuable materials, attract private investment and build a new recycling industry here in Alberta,” Article content Noon News Roundup Your weekday lunchtime roundup of curated links, news highlights, analysis and features. Sign Up By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Interested in more newsletters? Browse here. Article content The $14 fee will apply only to new panels supplied in Alberta after the program takes effect, with no retroactive charges for panels already installed. Article content The money will be used to cover the collection, transportation and recycling of panels when they reach the end of their useful lives, according to the province. Article content By 2045, more than 95 per cent of solar panels currently installed in Alberta are expected to reach the end of their lives, generating as much as 72,700 tonnes of material. Article content Solar panels contain valuable glass, aluminum, silicon, silver, copper and other metals, which can be recovered and used in new…