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When it comes to being green, lots of people look for the labels, and the most visible and popular label is the Energy Star label from the U.S Environmental Protection Agency. The Agency notes that "If all computers sold in the United States meet the ENERGY STAR requirements, the savings in energy costs will grow to about $2 billion each year and greenhouse gas emissions will be reduced by the equivalent of those from 2 million cars." Their criteria include ensuring that the computers use energy efficiently, Operate efficiently in Standby/Off, Sleep, and Idle modes, and "Include and enable power management features of the system and provide user education about these features."
That's it. Now one would think that the Environmental Protection Agency would be worried about environmental protection, but in fact all they are worried about here is energy consumption. No mention of the dangers from fire retardants, cadmium, lead or PVC. Not a peep about recycling or recyclability.
However there is an alternative: the Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tool, or EPEAT. This non-profit association rates computers according to 51 different environmental criteria in eight main categories: materials selection, environmentally sensitive materials, design for end of life, end-of-life management, energy conservation, product longevity and life-cycle extension, packaging, and corporate performance. Green consultant Joel Mackower notes that "Building to new IEEE 1680 standard essentially means building durable computers that use minimal energy, are easily upgraded, and can be easily (and harmlessly) recycled. That's a good value proposition likely to sell more machines regardless of whether buyers specify the new standard."
It isn't perfect; there is no third party verification. Manufacturers declare that the products meet the standard and there are random tests, but " This ensures that new products appear on the registry as soon as they are released, with no delay in time-to-market, and also keeps the cost of operating EPEAT down." Energy Star works this way as well.
All EPEAT registered computers are Energy Star, but not all Energy Star computers are EPEAT because instead of just saving electricity, EPEAT purchases of computers in 2007:
- Reduce use of primary materials by 75.5 million metric tons, equivalent to the weight of more than 585 million refrigerators.
- Reduce use of toxic materials, including mercury, by 3,220 metric tons, equivalent to the weight of 1.6 million bricks.
- Eliminate use of enough mercury to fill 482,381 household fever thermometers.
- Avoid the disposal of 124,000 metric tons of hazardous waste, equivalent to the weight of 62 million bricks.
So if you want a green computer, Repeat, ask for EPEAT gold or silver.
Find your new computer on EPEAT: EPEAT Search
