You should inform that environmental scientist that Veolia in France has a pilot facility that can recycle 95% of the materials recovered from retired solar panels. The other 5% can be used as feedstock for asphalt aggregate.

Keep in mind, panel longevity is upwards of 25-30 years, at which point they'll still be producing 80-90% of their rated output. Inverters (single or micro) can be recycled in traditional electronics recycling processes.

https://www.veolia.com/en/newsroom/news/recycling-photovolta...