Apple: It’s Not Easy Being Green
By now half the planet has heard or read the Greenpeace article on Apple and how it is not considered a Green (environmentally friendly) company. Greenpeace ranked 14 electronics manufacturers for “greenness” and Apple came in last. I can’t say I’m too concerned as an Apple customer. Greenpeace as an organization started slipping in credibility with me a while back when their Sea Shepherd arm was in a brouhaha off the coast of Japan, among other things. I think they have nice ideals, but perhaps have allowed themselves to slip behind the times. But I digress… apparently I am not the only one who takes Greenpeace with a grain of salt:
An Apple spokeswoman said the company rejects Greenpeace’s ranking system and that its products are among the “greenest” on the market, pointing to more technical ratings used by the Green Electronics Council. “We disagree with Greenpeace’s rating and the criteria they chose,” Apple spokeswoman Sheryl Seitz said, reading a prepared statement. “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 (brominated flame retardants).”
Apple mentioned gong by the standards of the Green electronics Council, which ranked them slightly higher than Lenovo, the company Greenpeace ranked first this year.
The Green Electronics Council, funded by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, runs a web site that allows buyers to judge products on a score comprised of 23 different categories established by the IEE, including the materials used, energy conservation and packaging. Apple scored generally better than Lenovo and Dell.
In short, the Greenpeace study was incomplete, leaving out a variety of chemicals Apple eschews and failing to credit their production of wastes and packaging techniques, among other things that make Apple rank better than Greenpeace’s “last” on a green list for electronics companies. all that aside, how did Apple end up in environmental news yet again? They have been tapped for a fine in the Sacramento Metropolitan Air Quality Management District that totals nearly $44,000 USD.
What’s the fine for? Air pollution, taken from an April 2006 permit violation. The fine is a settlement that has been reached between Apple and Sacramento Metropolitan. So what did Apple do that was so heinous? They operated an emergency generator for a few days in April 2006 during a non-emergency. It was a permit violation. Because of the Greenpeace list, it made the news.
So what’s your opinion? Is Apple green enough? I say yes.
Author: Leslie Poston, © 2007, All Rights Reserved
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April 18th, 2007 at 4:26 pm
[...] carillonista wrote an interesting post today onHere’s a quick excerptBy now half the planet has heard or read the Greenpeace article on Apple and how it is not considered a Green (environmentally friendly) company. Greenpeace ranked 14 electronics manufacturers for “greenness†and Apple came in last. … [...]
April 19th, 2007 at 12:51 am
I´ve read the Greenpeace material and I’m afraid they’re right. Apple could do better (and I’m a huge Apple fan.) OK, they comply with US EPA standards, but Greenpeace is applying the higher European standards plus some of their own which are hard to argue with: get rid of PVC so kids in Asia that cook circuit boards to recycle electronics don’t get poisoned. Firemen here in the US have been campaiging against PVC for the same reason: it’s not illegal, but that doesn’t make it right.
I want the best computer in the world to be the most earth-friendly computer in the world as well. What’s wrong with that?
April 19th, 2007 at 2:19 pm
I agree, we should be able to HAVE BOTH, a great computer and a clean land, but I will use APPPLE no matter what “standards”
May 3rd, 2007 at 3:43 pm
[...] Steve Jobs and Apple Address Greenpeace Concerns May 3rd, 2007 by Leslie Poston Recently we posted about Greenpeace ranking Apple low on the environmentally friendly “green company” scale. Above all else, Apple prides itself on having its finger on the pulse of what its customers want and need and immediately taking care of any customer service issue. True to form, Jobs himself has responded to Greenpeace regarding Apple’s environmental practices. You have to love a company who works so hard to make it’s loyal fans happy. You can read his full letter, A Greener Apple, here. [...]