Aussies are transforming 40-metre wind turbine blades into surfboard fins. Recycles nearly 90% of used blades instead ending up in landfills

What happens to a wind turbine when its working life is over? In Australia, one surfer has found an unusual answer: take part of the giant blade and put it back in the water. Sydney surfer and designer Banjo Hunt is turning sections of retired wind-turbine blades into surfboard fins, giving a second life to a material that is notoriously difficult to recycle. The idea is gaining attention after professional surfer Darcy Crump tested the prototype fins during the 2026 Australian Boardriders Battle on the Gold Coast. The project offers an unusual example of how old renewable-energy equipment can be reused rather than simply discarded.

From a 40-metre turbine blade to a surfboard

Hunt's project began with a section of a blade from the Waubra Wind Farm near Ballarat in Victoria. The wind farm's blades are about 40 metres long, and Hunt used a six-metre section of one blade to make the fins. Using a computer-controlled cutter, he shaped the strong composite material into surfboard fins. Hunt told ABC that he had previously experimented with materials from caravan and boat walls, but their fibreglass structure was not suitable for the fins. That search eventually led him to wind-turbine blades. The material turned out to be particularly useful because turbine blades are engineered to withstand years of strong winds and harsh weather.

Professional surfer puts the fins to the test

The idea was not left as a workshop experiment. Professional surfer Darcy Crump tested the turbine-made fins at the 2026 Australian Boardriders Battle. Crump said the fins felt “a little stiffer” than some commercially produced alternatives but found their performance comparable with established products. He also said he planned to continue using them when surfing more powerful waves. That real-world test gives the project a stronger sustainability story. Instead of simply turning old blade material into a decorative object, Hunt is using it to make equipment that can actually be used in the sport.

Why are old turbine blades difficult to recycle?

The challenge comes from the same feature that makes wind turbines useful. While most of a wind turbine can be recycled, blades are largely made from combinations of fibreglass, carbon fibre and epoxy resin. These materials are bonded together to create a lightweight but extremely strong structure. That makes conventional recycling difficult.

“Separating the composite materials from the resin requires specialised processes,” Eva Julius-Philipp, Vattenfall's director of environment and sustainability for its wind business, told Euronews. She said the processes can involve high temperatures or other energy-intensive treatment, making large-scale recycling more difficult. The problem is expected to become more important as older wind farms are dismantled and replaced with newer, more powerful turbines.

Australia faces a growing blade-waste problem

According to the ABC, the Clean Energy Council estimates that Australia has 31 wind farms with turbines more than 15 years old. By 2034, decommissioned wind farms are expected to produce around 15,000 tonnes of blade composite waste. ACCIONA, which operates the Waubra Wind Farm, said the issue is likely to become increasingly important as more turbines reach the end of their working lives. The company also said modern turbine blades can reach about 80 metres, making their transportation and disposal an even greater challenge.

Surfboard fins are only one possible solution

Hunt's fins are part of a much wider effort to find useful second lives for old turbine components. WindEurope says retired blades have already been used for pedestrian bridges, playgrounds, urban furniture and shelters. Other projects have turned blade materials into sneakers, skis and even parts of buildings.

In Europe, companies are also experimenting with more advanced recycling methods that recover fibres and other materials for use in new products. The Guardian has reported on the growing effort to deal with retired turbine blades, noting that around 85% to 90% of a wind turbine is made from materials such as steel that are comparatively easy to recycle, while the composite blades remain the tougher problem.

A small idea for a growing problem

Turning one turbine blade into surfboard fins will not solve Australia's future blade-waste problem on its own. But it demonstrates something important: material designed to survive decades of wind and weather does not necessarily have to become waste when its first job ends. For Hunt, that durability is precisely what makes the material useful. A giant blade that once helped generate electricity is now being shaped into equipment designed to ride ocean waves, giving an old piece of renewable-energy infrastructure a very different second life.