The
Greener Electronics Guide is our way of getting the electronics
industry to face up to the problem of e-waste. We want
manufacturers to get rid of harmful chemicals in their products. We
want to see an end to the stories of unprotected child laborers
scavenging mountains of cast-off gadgets created by society's
gizmo-loving ways.
The Guide ranks top market leaders of the mobile phone,
computer, TV and games console markets according to their policies
and practices on toxic chemicals and takeback.
Samsung and
Toshiba share top spot with 7.7/10 closely followed by Nokia,
Sony,
Dell and Lenovo all on 7.3.
Apple continues its steady rise due to new products like the
MacBook Air with less toxic chemicals helping boost Apple to
6.7.
Since the Guide was first published in August 2006, many
electronics companies have vastly improved their environmental
policies and practice. The leadership position has changed four
times and the average score has risen significantly as the
companies compete to outdo each other.
Nintendo stuck on start
Nintendo has made some tiny changes to score 0.3, since being
the first company to score 0 when added last November. Nintendo
remains the odd one out with no public policy on toxics elimination
or recycling, unlike the other 17 companies in the guide. We have
requested information from Nintendo head offices several times and
sent it the ranking in advance but have received no response. More
on
Nintendo's score.
Among Nintendo's competitors,
Microsoft improved it's score to 4.7, mainly by bring forwards
its deadline to 2010 for eliminating toxic PVC and BFR's. Sony
remains the leading console maker on 7.3, but it has yet to
introduce any green innovation in the Playstation.
We have been testing the claims of several companies recycling
policies. In the last edition of the guide
Nokia and
Motorola were given a penalty point because of poor or
non-existent service in several countries. Motorola's recycling
service has subsequently improved so its penalty point has been
lifted. Our testers still encountered problems with Nokia's
recycling in India and Russia, so the penalty point remains in
place, keeping Nokia off the top spot.
Rising to the challenge
With 14 of the 18 companies in the guide now scoring over 5/10
and six companies scoring 7.3 or more we will be raising the bar in
the next version of the guide. To encourage the electronics
industry to take a more holistic approach to its' practices and
operations, and ensure companies have to take responsibility for
the entire lifecycle of their products we have published new
criteria for the next edition.
The chemicals and e-waste criteria are more stringent, and we
have added new energy criteria. The global Information and
Communication Technology industry is estimated to be responsible
for approximately 2
percent of global carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, a figure
equivalent to aviation.
The rapid proliferation of energy hungry gadgets is part of this
emissions rise so it's vital that all companies play a leading role
in producing more energy efficient products.
We will be scoring the companies on 5 energy criteria, including
the efficiency of their products, how much renewable energy they
use and if they are committed to significantly reduce
emissions.
Green IT has been a big buzzword in the electronics industry
recently. The next version of the Guide (due out in June 08) will
help reveal which companies are truly green - those that are
designing products free of toxic chemicals, energy efficient,
durable and recyclable.
Take action
Write to Nintendo, Microsoft and Sony to increase the pressure for greener products at our Clash of the Consoles website.
Donate
We never allow ourselves to be fed by a hand we might want to bite. Not accepting corporate donations means we rely entirely on people like you to help keep us going. Some of our corporate targets spend in a few hours what we spend in an entire year. Please help with anything you can.