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Greenpeace has stated that although Apple is improving, they’ve still got a long way to go before they can be classed as eco-friendly.
Greenpeace and Apple haven’t always seen eye-to-eye. In 2007, protestors infiltrated the Macworld expo (and were promptly ejected) and Greenpeace issued a statement claiming the iPhone/iTunes lines were toxic, which was vehemently denied.
However, at this year’s Macworld there wasn’t a protestor in sight, and Jobs made a series of environmental promises during his keynote speech. He proudly announced that the Macbook Air’s thin aluminium casing is fully recyclable, that the display is mercury and arsenic free, and that all Apple circuit boards will be free of brominated flame retardants and poly-vinyl chloride.
Speaking to DailyTech, Rick Hind, the legislative director of Greenpeace’s toxics campaign, said that Apple were making good steps, but not there yet:
"Apple is getting greener, but not green enough. The Macbook Air has less toxic PVC plastic and less toxic BFRs, but it could have zero and that would make Apple an eco-leader.
"Apple sometimes gets really defensive,” added Hind. “They say: Why are you picking on us — especially when we have such a small market share compared to the rest of the industry?"
Hind explained that they are targeting Apple because they are not only a tech leader, but also an innovator, and that if Apple changes then the industry will follow suit.
