New iPods make Apple greener, but not green enough for Greenpeace

Stephen Withers
Thursday, 11 September 2008 06:02

Science - Energy

Greenpeace has praised Apple for eliminating certain harmful chemicals from the latest iPods. That's quite a turnaround for the organisation that previously criticised Apple not for its deeds but for a lack of words.

Historically, the relationship between Greenpeace and Apple has not been a good one. From its inception, Greenpeace's Guide To Greener Electronics has given Apple relatively low scores, and twice ranked Apple last.

Trouble is, the Guide is based on whether companies are 'talking the talk' rather than 'walking the walk.' For example, a vendor that had already eliminated PVC and BFRs from its products but hadn't publicised the fact would receive a lower score than one that had announced plans to phase them out over several years. And a company that stays mute on a particular issue stands to get a zero score on that criterion.

In 2007, Greenpeace ran a "Green my Apple" (aka ".mAct") web campaign in 2007 that resulted in more than 46,000 people writing to Apple CEO Steve Jobs calling for greener products.

In the last year or so, Apple has been more vocal about what it's trying to do in terms of environmental issues, and consequently has moved up the rankings. But Greenpeace still criticises Apple for not publishing its restricted/banned substances list, for example.

Recent MacBooks, iMacs and iPods are largely BFR free, with reduced use of PVC in cables. Apple has make a point of publicising that information, and consequently the most recent edition (June 2008) of the Guide shows Apple just short of half way up the rankings.

What does Greenpeace like about the new iPods, and what is it still waiting for? Please read on.