The environmental track records of Apple Computer and Lenovo Group have been singled out for criticism by environmental group Greenpeace in a report on toxic chemicals used by the technology industry.
"The scoring is weighted more heavily on the use of toxic substances in production rather than criteria on recycling because until the use of harmful substances is eliminated in products, it is impossible to secure 'safe,' toxic-free recycling," Greenpeace said in a statement.
Nokia and Dell came out top in the ranking, with the Finnish handset manufacturer leading the way in 2005 by eliminating use of polyvinyl chloride (PVC) in its products. Dell also has set ambitious targets for cutting its use of PVC and brominated flame retardants (BFRs), according to Greenpeace.
Lenovo and Apple fared less well, with the Chinese PC manufacturer ranked last. Greenpeace claimed that Lenovo earned some points for its chemicals management and voluntary take-back programs but needs to do better on all criteria.
A Lenovo representative said the company meets worldwide environmental regulations and argued that Greenpeace's ranking doesn't accurately reflect its environmental record.
"We sell our products primarily to commercial enterprises, not consumers, and we offer recycling services on a bid basis to any commercial customer with whom we do business. Those bid services do not appear on our Web site, and company Web sites were noted as one of the main sources for Greenpeace's evaluation," the representative added.
The environmental group also said that Apple could do more to match its environmental record with its hip and trendy image. "It is disappointing to see Apple ranking so low in the overall guide. They are meant to be world leaders in design and marketing; they should be world leaders in environmental innovation."
A representative for Apple disagreed with Greenpeace's rating and the criteria it had chosen. "Apple has a strong environmental track record and has led the industry in restricting and banning toxic substances such as mercury, cadmium and hexavalent chromium, as well as many BFRs. We have also completely eliminated CRT (cathode ray tube) monitors, which contain lead, from our product line," the representative said.
The EU Restriction of Hazardous Substances (RoHS) directive, which limits the use of certain hazardous substances in electrical and electronic equipment, went into force in the U.K. on July 1 and should go some way toward forcing the technology industry to clean up its act.
In July, Palm was forced to stop shipping its Treo 650 smart phone in Europe, because it violated the RoHS directive.
Greenpeace has embarassed itself once again. Its' criteria, and motivation, for this kind of report is beyond silly. It makes one wonder which computer CEO donated more to the Greenpeace cause, and how they were rated. Apple's response to this nonsense was exactly right.
give it a few more hours and this message board will be filled with conspiracy theories on how Dell, HP, Nokia and Lenovo have paid Greenpeace to produce these reports against Apple...
Alright, this is a bogus article. I've been working with manufacturers in the Guangzhou area of China and know many of the CE manufacturers there.
Many companies making CE products, toys etc. for export are having no control of their local polution in China and are following RoHS regulations only when forced to it. You can't imagine the conditions in some factories there and how cost focused everything is. You would never like to jog outside in this "world's electronics manufacting area" because the air is incredibly dirty.
So when Apple factually is a leader in both environmental and work condition policies it's sad to see such article. Obviously most other companies can learn from them.
Perhaps many people don't know this, but when you buy a product even from a well-known brand, it's often manufactured through a contract manufacturer you never heard about and many of these have their own not very impressive policies. And it's even getting worse when you look at the sub-suppliers that are often never in direct contact with the customer of the contract manufactorer. It would be a surprise if not relatively many Chinese factory workers are dying of cancer after a few years working in these companies.
Apple products are RoHS compliant today by the way.
Perhaps an article about the outstanding company policies of Apple would be a much more valuable article? It would perhaps help put a bit pressure on the real sinners...
Alright, this is a bogus article. I've been working with manufacturers in the Guangzhou area of China and know many of the CE manufacturers there.
Many companies making CE products, toys etc. for export are having no control of their local polution in China and are following RoHS regulations only when forced to it. You can't imagine the conditions in some factories there and how cost focused everything is. You would never like to jog outside in this "world's electronics manufacting area" because the air is incredibly dirty.
So when Apple factually is a leader in both environmental and work condition policies it's sad to see such article. Obviously most other companies can learn from them.
Perhaps many people don't know this, but when you buy a product even from a well-known brand, it's often manufactured through a contract manufacturer you never heard about and many of these have their own not very impressive policies. And it's even getting worse when you look at the sub-suppliers that are often never in direct contact with the customer of the contract manufactorer. It would be a surprise if not relatively many Chinese factory workers are dying of cancer after a few years working in these companies.
Apple products are RoHS compliant today by the way.
Perhaps an article about the outstanding company policies of Apple would be a much more valuable article? It would perhaps help put a bit pressure on the real sinners...
You'll see that the report covers RoHS and other regulatory requirements (plus some issues that are beyond the scope of current regulations).
Greenpeace has done a good job with this report. Key findings link back to policy documents from the companies themselves.
Admittedly, no company can achieve every goal immediately.
Now I'd like to see a report on short-term, low-tech, low-cost improvements such as:
- User-replaceable batteries in MP3 players -- to slow down the disposal rate by prolonging the economic life of these devices.
- Energy-efficient switching-type power supplies for electronic devices with external transformers -- to reduce indirect pollution by reducing electricity consumption.
- More efficient built-in power supplies for desktop computers -- same goal as above.
- Conveniently located "hard" off switches for low-voltage electronics -- to eliminate "standby" power consumption.
Mac users keep their machines in service much longer than typical PC users. While your old machines are probably in a landfill, mine are passed down to friends and relatives.
Greenpeace are wackos. Who cares what they say? I'm sure if Apple paid their protection money, they wouldn't have been singled out. Someone should ask Greenpeace how much CO2 the Rainbow Warrior produces.
You might want to have a look at how Greenpeace have modified as much as possible every component of their ships so that they have as benign an impact on the environment as possible <a class="jive-link-external" href="http://www.greenpeace.org/international/about/ships" target="_newWindow">http://www.greenpeace.org/international/about/ships</a>. The way Greenpeace conducts their direct actions, the ships are a neccessary part of the process. While they do have a negative impact on the environment(something Greenpeace has never denied) the point is they are doing as much as they can to reduce that impact, something that we should all try to do as well.
I've just discovered that the US EPA's procurement website for green IT equipment ranks Apple as a top performer. Apple desktop, portable and computer monitors clean the floor on the 2006 international IEEE standard for environmental assessment www.epeat.net
Perhaps Greenpeace's campaign was more of a piggy-back strategy off one of the worlds most successful brands. Shame....I hope they didn't waste too much campaign money?
Web giant is spending $120 million to beef up its Mountain View, Calif., headquarters, according to filings with the city reviewed by the San Jose Mercury News.
The Samsung Galaxy mini 2 S6500 could make its debut at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona later this month, according to a leaked promotional image.
Tor's "obfsproxy" technology would make encrypted data look innocuous and let it dodge government censors. That could help citizens in Iran reach blocked sites as antigovernment protests reportedly loom.
MIT creates a simulation to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Spacewar. A relic of the early days of minicomputers, it was one of the first computer video games and set the stage for many others, including Asteroids.
George Lucas has just released his version of "Star Wars" in 3D, but c'mon--the guy believes Greedo shot first. Why not make your own Star Wars world? In the first installment of a Crave series, a crack team of crafters fight the power and turn paper bags into the Rebel Alliance's Admiral Ackbar. It's a sack!
motivation, for this kind of report is beyond silly. It makes one
wonder which computer CEO donated more to the Greenpeace
cause, and how they were rated. Apple's response to this nonsense
was exactly right.
I remember when they cared.
Many companies making CE products, toys etc. for export are having no control of their local polution in China and are following RoHS regulations only when forced to it. You can't imagine the conditions in some factories there and how cost focused everything is. You would never like to jog outside in this "world's electronics manufacting area" because the air is incredibly dirty.
So when Apple factually is a leader in both environmental and work condition policies it's sad to see such article. Obviously most other companies can learn from them.
Perhaps many people don't know this, but when you buy a product even from a well-known brand, it's often manufactured through a contract manufacturer you never heard about and many of these have their own not very impressive policies. And it's even getting worse when you look at the sub-suppliers that are often never in direct contact with the customer of the contract manufactorer. It would be a surprise if not relatively many Chinese factory workers are dying of cancer after a few years working in these companies.
Apple products are RoHS compliant today by the way.
Perhaps an article about the outstanding company policies of Apple would be a much more valuable article? It would perhaps help put a bit pressure on the real sinners...
Many companies making CE products, toys etc. for export are having no control of their local polution in China and are following RoHS regulations only when forced to it. You can't imagine the conditions in some factories there and how cost focused everything is. You would never like to jog outside in this "world's electronics manufacting area" because the air is incredibly dirty.
So when Apple factually is a leader in both environmental and work condition policies it's sad to see such article. Obviously most other companies can learn from them.
Perhaps many people don't know this, but when you buy a product even from a well-known brand, it's often manufactured through a contract manufacturer you never heard about and many of these have their own not very impressive policies. And it's even getting worse when you look at the sub-suppliers that are often never in direct contact with the customer of the contract manufactorer. It would be a surprise if not relatively many Chinese factory workers are dying of cancer after a few years working in these companies.
Apple products are RoHS compliant today by the way.
Perhaps an article about the outstanding company policies of Apple would be a much more valuable article? It would perhaps help put a bit pressure on the real sinners...
You'll see that the report covers RoHS and other regulatory requirements (plus some issues that are beyond the scope of current regulations).
Greenpeace has done a good job with this report. Key findings link back to policy documents from the companies themselves.
Admittedly, no company can achieve every goal immediately.
Now I'd like to see a report on short-term, low-tech, low-cost improvements such as:
- User-replaceable batteries in MP3 players -- to slow down the disposal rate by prolonging the economic life of these devices.
- Energy-efficient switching-type power supplies for electronic devices with external transformers -- to reduce indirect pollution by reducing electricity consumption.
- More efficient built-in power supplies for desktop computers -- same goal as above.
- Conveniently located "hard" off switches for low-voltage electronics -- to eliminate "standby" power consumption.
<a class="jive-link-external" href="http://www.greenpeace.org/international/press/reports/greener-electronics-guide" target="_newWindow">http://www.greenpeace.org/international/press/reports/greener-electronics-guide</a>
PC users. While your old machines are probably in a landfill, mine
are passed down to friends and relatives.
Have a nice day!
head adjusted.
I'm sure if Apple paid their protection money, they wouldn't have been singled out. Someone should ask Greenpeace how much CO2 the Rainbow Warrior produces.
The way Greenpeace conducts their direct actions, the ships are a neccessary part of the process. While they do have a negative impact on the environment(something Greenpeace has never denied) the point is they are doing as much as they can to reduce that impact, something that we should all try to do as well.
green IT equipment ranks Apple as a top performer. Apple
desktop, portable and computer monitors clean the floor on the
2006 international IEEE standard for environmental assessment
www.epeat.net
Perhaps Greenpeace's campaign was more of a piggy-back strategy
off one of the worlds most successful brands. Shame....I hope they
didn't waste too much campaign money?