Apple has toxic core: Greenpeace

Still not green enough for greenies

By Emmet Ryan, ElectricNews.net • Get more from this author

Posted in IT Director, 16th January 2007 10:17 GMT

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Despite Apple's launch of the eco-friendly iPhone last week, Greenpeace is demanding an environmental revolution that will shake the company to its core.

In his keynote address at Macworld, Apple's chief executive Steve Jobs said the iPhone would be recyclable and partially solar powered, but the environmental lobby demonstrated near the site of Apple's expo in San Francisco.

Greenpeace activists projected giant images of the contaminated Asian scrapyards where the group claims many electronic products, including those made by Apple, end up. The activists projected images onto a wall above an Apple retail outlet of electronics being melted down, taken apart and apparently releasing toxic chemicals.

Greenpeace activists have maintained a blog on the campaigning organisation's website that discusses events at the expo.

Jobs poked fun at Greenpeace's criticism of the company during a slideshow when launching the new iPhone. He said the lobby group should "get out of the computer business [and] go save some whales".

This recent exchange between the two parties is the latest to result from Greenpeace's ongoing campaign against Apple's environmental practices. The environmentalist group claims Apple is lagging behind other electronics companies, who have made commitments to "green" their products.

ENN reported in August that Greenpeace criticised Apple when it published its Guide to Greener Electronics. The guide is designed to help consumers and businesses gauge how environmentally considerate tech vendors are when planning a purchase.

Rather than focusing on recycling, the group claims the toxic chemicals used by tech suppliers should be the main issue considered by anyone wishing to buy eco-friendly computers and other devices. The report criticised Apple's performance in this regard and claimed the company could do more to match its environmental record with its hip and trendy image.

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