How Decom Solar Supports Nature-Based Solutions Beyond the Grid

We see every decommissioned solar array as a collection of valuable resources, not waste. Our teams work to ensure that high-value materials such as silicon, aluminum, copper, steel, and glass are responsibly recovered, sorted, and re-entered into the manufacturing stream. These materials can be upcycled into new solar modules, building products, consumer goods, and even next-generation clean energy technologies. Our goal is to close the loop on solar waste by ensuring these materials stay in circulation and contribute to the next chapter of sustainability.

Sustainability only works when we take responsibility for the entire lifecycle of a system, not just the day it is installed. If solar equipment ends up in a landfill, we undermine the environmental progress the industry aims to create. Recovering and upcycling materials lowers the demand for newly mined resources, reduces emissions, and preserves the environmental integrity of clean energy. In short, responsible end-of-life management ensures that solar always lives up to its promise.

Not every solar module that is removed is at the true end of its life. Many still have plenty of production capacity left. Through our partnerships across the United States and internationally, we identify modules and equipment suitable for reuse and donate them to communities that lack access to reliable electricity. This equipment powers schools, health centers, small businesses, and community facilities, giving aging assets a second life while improving quality of life for under-resourced communities. For us and our clients, reuse is both sustainable and impactful.

Environmental and social responsibility shape every decision we make. Beyond recycling and reuse, our team is involved in community initiatives, educational outreach, and conservation efforts such as tree-planting programs. We believe that sustainability is not only an environmental responsibility, but a human one. Whether we are recovering modules, supporting local workers, or participating in environmental projects, we look for ways to give back to both the planet and the people who rely on it.

We founded Decom Solar with the belief that clean energy should leave more good behind than it takes. Social responsibility is woven into our identity because we work in an industry that exists to better the world. Our ESG goals reflect that.

• Environmental: Reduce waste, promote circularity, and minimize landfill use.
• Social: Support communities through reuse programs, education, and energy access.
• Governance: Operate with integrity, transparency, and accountability.

Doing the right thing is how we define our success.

Reforestation was quickly recognized as a way to restore ecosystems, capture carbon, and protect biodiversity. When we learned about the Plant a Tree Day campaign, it was a no-brainer for us to participate. We work every day to reduce environmental harm through responsible decommissioning, and supporting reforestation allows us to take that commitment one step further by actively rebuilding natural landscapes. It is another way to give back and strengthen the planet we are working to preserve.

Solar is a critical solution to climate change, but it does not work alone. Reforestation restores degraded land, supports wildlife habitats, and improves the ecological health of the environment where solar projects often operate and where our clients live. By supporting reforestation, we reinforce the same environmental goals that clean energy advances, including reducing carbon, promoting sustainability, and securing a healthier planet for future generations.

Clean energy reduces emissions, and reforestation removes carbon already in the atmosphere. Together, they address the climate challenge from two essential angles. Reforestation also strengthens ecosystems, supports water cycles, and improves soil health, benefits that technology alone cannot provide. We believe pairing nature-based solutions with clean energy innovation creates a more resilient and comprehensive approach to climate action.

Our aha moment came from witnessing the scale of solar growth and realizing that true sustainability goes beyond renewable energy generation. Decom Solar was founded to help close the gap in the industry’s lifecycle responsibility. As we grew, we recognized that we could contribute to environmental restoration in ways that extend beyond solar. Reforestation became a priority because it offers a direct and meaningful way to rebuild the natural systems that support all climate solutions, including renewable energy.

Trees play an important ecological role around large scale solar farms when managed responsibly. They help stabilize soil, support biodiversity, reduce dust, and enhance habitat around project boundaries. In many cases, thoughtfully planned vegetation can improve site aesthetics and create natural buffers for nearby communities. While trees cannot be placed too close to the arrays themselves, the surrounding landscape can benefit significantly from healthy, well-managed tree cover. It complements solar development by strengthening the environment that surrounds and supports the site.