Retired wind turbines turned into tiny solar-powered homes and recycled skis

As much as wind turbines are important, once their blades are decommissioned, all that's left for them is to live in landfills for years. Europe is on track for a record win year, with 8.8 GW of new capacity installed in the first half of 2026, a 30% jump year on year. That’s enough electricity to power around seven million European households and replace fossil fuel imports equivalent to 25 LNG tankers a year, according to industry nonprofit WindEurope.But for every turbine that goes up, one comes down. And manufacturers are still trying to figure out how to make sure that none of the materials goes to waste. While 90% of a wind turbine's mass is made of easily recyclable materials like steel, copper, aluminium and concrete, composite materials make up the majority of their blades, and this is where the problem arises.