Electronista: Large PC builders are dragging their feet when it comes to environmental promises, claims Greenpeace. The activist group has once again updated its Guide to Greener Electronics, which assigns relative rankings to major high-tech corporations.
Leading the new rankings are Nokia, Samsung and Sony Ericsson, whereas the bottom is occupied by console maker Nintendo. Sony itself has fallen precipitously from 5th to 12th place, having lost progress on recycling.
A new development is the assignment of “penalty points” to major PC builders, including HP, Dell and Lenovo. The companies have delayed plans to strip PVC and brominated flame retardants (BFRs) from computers, Greenpeace says, and in the case of HP, none of its current systems have reduced toxicity.
The chemicals are not an immediate danger, but can have long-term impact, especially on the people and wildlife near dumpsites in Asia and Africa, where toxins can accumulate in larger quantities.
Greenpeace meanwhile continues to praise Apple, which it says has worked hard to ensure Macs are nearly free of PVC, and entirely free of BFRs. It is “ridiculous” that companies like Dell are challenging Apple advertising, Greenpeace claims, when the latter is performing so well next to its rivals.
The Better Business Bureau has however recommended that Apple stop calling MacBooks the most environmentally-friendly notebooks on the market.
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