September 16, 2008
Apple’s score remains the same, at 4.1 points, but the company drops to 13th position. Apple scores well for putting products on the market whose key components are free of brominated flame retardants (BFRs) and PVC vinyl plastic. Apple’s latest iPods - the iPod Touch, iPod Nano and iPod Classic, are now free of both PVC and BFRs, along with an absence of mercury and the use of arsenic-free glass.
Many other models have PVC and BFR free components; for example, all new models of iMac and the MacBook Air. While Apple has now positioned itself amongst the leaders in the electronics industry on phasing out toxic substances, to score more points the complete phase-out of PVC and BFRs in its iPods should be consistent across all other future product ranges, from Apple iPhone to Apple Macs. Apple also needs to commit to phasing out additional substances with timelines, improve its policy on chemicals and its reporting on chemicals management.
Apple scores poorly on most e-waste criteria, except for reporting a recycling rate in 2006 of 9.5% as a percentage of sales 7 years ago.
It does only slightly better on energy criteria, failing to score on all criteria except energy efficiency of products, where it scores top marks (doubled) for all desktops computers, portable PCs and displays complying with Energy Star 4.0 and their iPod and iPhone power adapters not only exceeding the Energy Star standard, but already meeting California’s stricter efficiency regulations that became effective 1 July 2008.
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