Alberta government touts Oct. 1 launch of $14 solar panel recycling fee, landfill ban
Posted September 3, 2026 4:01 pm.
Albertans purchasing new solar panels next month will face a hefty fee for recycling them, the government says.
Environment Minister Grant Hunter says a ban on landfill disposal, and the $14 recycling fee per panel beginning Oct. 1, will protect municipalities and taxpayers from future costs.
Hunter estimates that by 2045, most of the solar panels currently installed in the province will reach the end of their lives and could produce nearly 73,000 tons of material.
But industry associations and advocates have said the $14 price tag is too steep, punitive, and being imposed without clear accounting to back it up.
Heather MacKenzie, executive director of Solar Alberta, says for a typical panel, the new fee is like adding a 10 per cent tax.
She says the impact will be significant, hurting small solar installation companies and resulting in job losses.
