The Task 12 is divided into the following 4 Subtasks:
Subtask 1 Recycling of Manufacturing Waste and Spent Modules
This subtask addresses the following objectives:
- Assist the development of collection infrastructure by examining and evaluating the collection infrastructure of other recyclables (e.g., electronics, liquid crystal displays)
- Enhance the interaction among industry players so that they share information and resources for collection and recycling
- Show the technical and cost feasibility of collection and recycling (to environmental-policy makers, e.g., WEEE, RoHS)
- Identify common tasks where financial resources can be shared (e.g., separation of EVA from the module).
Subtask 2 Life Cycle Assessment
This subtask aims at the following targets:
- Establish and demonstrate, with comprehensive and transparent studies over the full life cycle, that PV systems are environmentally friendly compared to other energy systems.
- Show the improvement trends of the PV environmental profile by certain indicators (e.g., EPBT, GHG emissions, waste reduction, materials' recycling/recovery).
- Continue showing such progress in annual updates over the course of Task 12 (5 years).
- Valuate the environmental benefits of PV by showing avoided impacts or avoided "external" costs.
Subtask 3 EHS in Manufacturing Facilities
The main objectives within this subtask are:
- Develop risk factors and compare with other energy technologies
- Identify accident prevention and control options for specific technologies
- Identify pollution control technologies for major types of PV manufacturing facilities
- Identify prevention and control strategies for green-house gases (GHG) in PV manufacturing facilities
Subtask 4 EHS Information Dissemination
The methods and results obtained from subtasks 1-3 above will be communicated and disseminated by various target-oriented communication tools, such as:
- Short and simple “fact sheets”, documented by peer-review publications
- Reports summarizing the activities undertaken for accomplishing the objectives of the task and the task results
- Presentations and peer-review publications