JinkoSolar Holding Co., Ltd., one of the largest and most innovative solar module manufacturers in the world, announced that EAGLE® Preserve, its proprietary takeback-and-recycling program for end-of-life solar modules in the U.S., has become the very-first such stewardship program to receive the approval of the Washington State Department of Ecology.
EAGLE® Preserve will pick up end-of-life modules registered with the Stewardship Program from Commercial and Industrial ("C&I") and utility project sites in Washington and ensure they are recycled in a sustainable way, giving solar power customers in Washington their very first turnkey recycling solutions provider.
The EAGLE® Preserve Stewardship Program starts July 1 this year. At that time, other manufacturers may also join the Stewardship Program and offer the same services to their customers.
Washington laws requiring that solar manufacturers who sell products in-state create and implement an end-of-life module stewardship program (at no cost to the project owner), have been on the books for nearly a decade (RCW 70A.510.010). In that time, the State of Washington has reconfirmed its policies for end-of-life requirements for solar modules, ensuring that all module components are disassembled and responsibly repurposed or recycled. A state-approved stewardship plan must ensure the convenient, safe, and environmentally sound takeback and recycling of modules. A manufacturer's plan, and/or the program it joins, must cover all modules it has sold into the State of Washington after July 1st, 2017.
With today's announcement, JinkoSolar is happy to be considered the state's leader in panel recycling.
"JinkoSolar is honored to get approval for the EAGLE® Preserve Stewardship Program in the State of Washington," said Nigel Cockroft, General Manager of JinkoSolar (U.S) Inc. "JinkoSolar takes compliance very seriously, and we developed EAGLE® Preserve with an eye toward serving the Washington market effectively, responsibly, and in intentional accordance with state law."
