18 March 2008 - In the
latest edition of our quarterly Guide to
Greener Electronics Samsung and Toshiba
share top spot. Nokia misses out
on top spot due to a penalty point for inconsistent
global takeback. Nintendo remains rooted
to the bottom with only a tiny improvement
but Microsoft and Philips both improve their
scores.
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 labourers 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 it's 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 it's 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-existant 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.
The new criteria are now available and discussed
in more detail on our weblog.
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.
