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Tue, 29 Aug 2006 Greenpeace slams Apple's eco-credentials

Jeremy Kirk

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Greenpeace has slammed Apple, Motorola and others over their environmental policies, while offering some praise to Nokia for its proactive approach to environmental protection.

Greenpeace, which publishes the Green Electronics Guide every three months, scores companies on their use of hazardous chemicals, recycling and take-back policies. It uses information published by the companies.

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Nokia scored highly for eliminating its use of polyvinyl chlorides (PVCs), which are widely used but difficult-to-recycle plastics that cause the release of dioxin, another toxin, when manufactured. The Finnish company plans to stop using brominated flame retardants (BFRs) by the start of 2007, Greenpeace said.

Apple appeared fourth from bottom of the list above Acer, Motorola and Lenovo.

"For a company that claims to lead on product design, Apple scores badly on almost all criteria," Greenpeace said.

Apple doesn't publish a list of regulated substances it uses in its products, Greenpeace said. Apple has not released timelines for eliminating PVCs and BFRs, and only sells a few peripheral items free of PVCs.

While Apple has take-back programs in place in some countries, it reports the weight of recycled products and not the percentage of sales, Greenpeace said. Apple received one positive mark for not exporting e-waste, which has become an issue in developing countries where hardware with toxic substances may be mishandled.

Apple said it disagreed with Greenpeace's ratings and criteria. The computer company said it has eliminated cathode ray tube monitors containing lead from its product lines, along with cadmium and hexavalent chromium in manufacturing.

A small amount of mercury is used in Apple's flat-panel displays, as the element is used throughout the industry for backlight lamps, the vendor said. Apple is looking for an alternative.

Lenovo, which took over IBM's PC business in May 2005, came last on Greenpeace's list. The company has not committed to eliminating PVCs or BFRs, or defined a "precautionary principle", which is a set of guidelines governing actions that could cause environmental damage, according to Greenpeace. The vendor also has a limited take-back policy in some countries, which Greenpeace called "partially bad".

Lenovo disputed the findings, saying it offers recycling to all of its business customers -- a service not detailed online Lenovo has continued IBM's Environmental Management System, a program that covers manufacturing and product design, and is meshing that system with its own, pre-existing environmental policy, it said.

"Lenovo meets or exceeds applicable environmental regulations globally, and we don't believe Greenpeace's ranking accurately reflects Lenovo's environmental record," the company said in a statement.

None of the companies scored perfectly. Even first-place Nokia, for example, doesn't release figures on the number of units it recycles, according to Greenpeace. The vendor should also more clearly define its precautionary principle, the environmental group said.

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