If Solar Panels Are So Clean, Why Do They Produce So Much Toxic Waste?
A question I'd like to see answered: are solar panels net energy producers? I.e. over their lifetime, do they generate more electricity than combined energy that went into manufacturing, transporting and deploying them, including the marginal energy costs of mining the necessary substances they're made of?<p>Because if not, then they're a net waste.<p>I'd like to see a similar analysis on emissions instead of raw energy too.<p>It's not that I think solar is bad; it's just I don't understand why discussions about energy and emissions never include end-to-end accounting of energy costs & emissions.<p>--<p>EDIT: Yes, I am lazy; in the Christmas fever I forgot about the term "EROI", though I still see it discussed too rarely. But yay, thanks people for jumping to conclusions and accusing me of motivated reasoning and/or sowing disinformation. -.-