Greenpeace Again Ranks Nokia, Dell Highest in 'Green Electronics Guide'

CIO —

Greenpeace, an environmental protections group, on Wednesday released the second edition of its Green Electronics Guide, which ranks 14 leading PC and mobile manufacturers on their efforts to eliminate toxic substances from their products, as well as whether the firms offer product take-back or recycling plans and to what extent, according to a Dec. 6 release on Greenpeace.org.uk.

The rankings were based on publicly available information, as well as communications with the firms for various clarifications. The full scoring criteria can be found here.

The Greenpeace scorecard is based on a 10-point scale and is as follows:

1. Nokia (7.3)
   
2. Dell (7)
   
3. Fujitsu, Motorola (6)
   
4. Sony Ericsson, HP (5.7)
   
5. Acer, Lenovo (5.3)
   
6. Sony (5)
   
7. Panasonic (4.3)
   
8. LGE, Samsung (4)
   
9. Toshiba (3.7)
   
10. Apple (2.7)

Finland’s Nokia and Round Rock, Texas-based Dell again received the group’s top rankings.

Notable ranking increases include Motorola’s tie for third place with Fujitsu—the handset maker scored a 12th-place ranking last time around—and Lenovo’s jump from 13th place to a tie with Acer for fifth. Motorola improved in all criteria, and Lenovo also made progress in most areas; however, it was penalized for still including some of the most hazardous materials within its PCs and because its recycling and take-back programs still need work.

Also notable is the fact that Apple Computer—which prides itself on its iPod recycling efforts—received the lowest ranking of all companies taken into account. The Cupertino, Calif.-based firm got “low scores on almost all criteria and [made] no progress,” according to Greenpeace.

"The scorecard will provide a dynamic tool to green the electronics sector by setting off a race to the top,” said Iza Kruszewska, Greenpeace International toxics campaigner, in a statement on the group’s website. “By taking back their discarded products, companies will have incentives to eliminate harmful substances used in their products, since this is the only way they can ensure safe reuse and recycling of electronic waste."

The Green Electronics Guide will be updated every three months, and firms’ rankings will reflect their improvements—or lack thereof—in reducing the level of toxic substances used within their products and their recycling efforts.

The first edition of the guide was released in August.

Related Link:

• Greenpeace Blasts HP, Apple for Toxic Substances in PCs

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