Kristin Huguet, an Apple spokesperson, responded to concerns about Apple having removed its products from EPEAT. Huguet released a statement in defence of Apple’s decision to remove its product from the EPEAT environmental rating program. According to Huguet,
Apple takes a comprehensive approach to measuring our environmental impact and all of our products meet the strictest energy efficiency standards backed by the US government, Energy Star 5.2. We also lead the industry by reporting each product’s greenhouse gas emissions on our website, and Apple products are superior in other important environmental areas not measured by EPEAT, such as removal of toxic materials.
For those unaware, CEO of EPEAT, Robert Frisbee, brought attention to the matter when he revealed on Monday that Apple had asked EPEAT to remove 39 of its products from the EPEAT registry. These included desktops, laptops, and monitors. This came as somewhat of a surprise, as Apple had initially played a role in developing EPEAT standards. Apple has since moved in a different design direction that no longer meets EPEAT standards.
In addition to not measuring toxins and other environmental areas, EPEAT also doesn’t measure smartphones or tablets, which are obviously valuable devices to Apple’s revenue.
Companies like Dell have 171 products listed on EPEAT, but on Dell’s website it shows that none of their computers are Energy Star Compliant. Apple also publishes everything that makes up its carbon footprint on their website, which is something that EPEAT also doesn’t measure.
Part of the problem is that EPEAT standards are somewhat outdated. An EPEAT board member has said in the past that EPEAT needs to expand its global reach through multiple certifications, including more products, and updating certifications.
It’s difficult to know whether or not Apple’s decision to remove its products from the EPEAT registry will affect their consumer revenue, but it may affect the sales of Macs to government agencies. As of right now, federal agencies must be 95 percent EPEAT-certified and yesterday San Francisco said that it would be notifying city agencies that Macs will no longer qualify for purchase with city funds.
Source: The Loop via ModMyi
Image Credit: Cult of Mac
