The uncorked blade: qualitative standards for turbine material recovery
Every wind turbine blade eventually comes down. The question is not whether it will be replaced, but what happens to the composite material afterward. For operators, recyclers, and project developers, the recovery process is less about a single 'best' method and more about matching qualitative standards to the blade's condition, the available infrastructure, and the intended next use. This guide lays out the benchmarks we use when evaluating recovery options — not as a rigid checklist, but as a set of decision lenses that help teams avoid costly mismatches. Who must choose and by when The decision about blade recovery rarely belongs to one person. Typically, the asset owner, the operations team, and the decommissioning contractor all have a stake.