China is ramping up efforts to recycle retired wind turbines, aiming to reduce dependence on primary natural resources and foster new industries in recycling and green design. The country is expected to see over 30,000 wind turbines to be decommissioned by 2030, which will generate more than 3 million tonnes of solid waste, as a wave of equipment retirement and renewal in its wind power industry looms. A set of wind turbine contains roughly 86 percent steel, 10 percent fiberglass, 3.5 percent copper and aluminum, and 0.5 percent rare earth elements. While most components are recyclable, it remains difficult to reprocess retired turbine blades due to their stiffness, large size, and low residual value. To address this, Chinese companies are developing new technologies to re-purpose blade materials. At the China Wind Power (CWP 2025), held from Oct 20-22 in Beijing, manufacturers showcased artificial boards made from crushed blades. "Our boards with excellent waterproof performance meet the E0 grade for formaldehyde emissions, making them suitable for furniture. We currently produce 30,000 tons annually, and plan to expand capacity to 100,000 tons through more investment in research and development," said Zhou Hao, deputy manager of Envivest (Inner Mongolia) New Materials Technology Co., Ltd. Specialized robots have also been developed to perform hydraulic cutting of blades, doubling efficiency and reducing dust emissions. Now, retired blades are transformed into products such as artificial reefs and skateboards. "This company pulverizes the blades and compresses them into skateboards. In the first three quarters of this year, turbine dismantling rose 20 percent from the 2024 level," said said Cheng Gangqi, director of the Wind and Solar Equipment Recycling Committee at the China National Resources Recycling Association. Cheng said that the market potential is huge, with more turbines expected to retire in the coming years. SHOTLIST: FILE: China - Exact Location and Date Unknown 1. Wind turbine being dismantled; 2. Various of blades on ground; Beijing, China - Oct 20-22, 2025 2. Visitors at China Wind Power (CWP 2025); 3. Materials recycled from retired blades on display; 4. SOUNDBITE (Chinese) Zhou Hao, deputy manager, Envivest (Inner Mongolia) New Materials Technology Co., Ltd. (ending with shot 5): "Our boards with excellent waterproof performance meet the E0 grade for formaldehyde emissions, making them suitable for furniture. We currently produce 30,000 tons annually, and plan to expand capacity to 100,000 tons through more investment in research and development."; FILE: China - Exact Location and Date Unknown 5. Various of furniture boards in production; Beijing, China - Oct 20-22, 2025 6. Various of blade cutting system on display; 7. Various of information board showing blade recycling process; 8. Various of furniture board on display; 9. SOUNDBITE (Chinese) Cheng Gangqi, director, Wind and Solar Equipment Recycling Committee, China National Resources Recycling Association (ending with shots 10-11): "This company pulverizes the blades and compresses them into skateboards. In the first three quarters of this year, turbine dismantling rose 20 percent from the 2024 level."; FILE: China - Exact Location and Date Unknown 10. Various of old wind turbine blade being removed; FILE: Yangjiang City, Guangdong Province, south China - Date Unknown 11. Various of retired wind turbine components, blades. [Restrictions: No access Chinese mainland]