Huge Successes in Green Computing

Who would have thought that a little sticker would be the most significant advancement in green computing of 2006. Of course, there's a lot of knowledge and money behind these little stickers, but the results of the first 6 months of EPEAT certifications are in. And it looks to be quite good news.

EPEAT basically certifies electronic equipment with a bronze, silver or gold rating based on a number of environmental standards. How long does the product last, can it be recycled, will it be recycled, does it contain hazardous substances? All of these questions and more are asked and answered by the people at EPEAT. Only two computers, so far, have been rated EPEAT gold. But as manufacturers strive to get their little stickers (and publish press releases) the world is becoming a cleaner place.

So far, EPEAT certified computers, when compared with non-certified machines, have:

Saved 13.7 billion kWh of electricity
Saved 24.4 million metric tons of materials
Prevented 56.5 million metric tons of air pollution
Prevented 118,000 metric tons of water pollution;
Reduced toxic material use by 1,070 metric tons
Avoided the disposal of 41,100 metric tons of hazardous waste

And those numbers are just for the last half of 2006. All for the want of a little sticker, electronics companies are cleaning up their acts. Hopefully it won't be long before EPEAT has to introduce a new "platinum" medal, because too many folks are already getting golds.

See Also:
-HP Gets EPEAT Gold-

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Greenpeace Ranking
written by Salvatore Barbera, July 20, 2007

It looks like the electronics industry changed its attitude towards environmental issues in the last years. Epeat certification have been important in this process but we can't forget the role of Greenpeace that has been running an international campaign for a Greener industry since last August. Greenpeace Ranking guide, www.greenpeace.org/electronicsranking4, is based on different criteria reflecting two simple demands:
- clean up their products by eliminating hazardous substances;
- takeback and recycle their products responsibly once they become obsolete.
It gives, due to different criteria, different results. Anyway both rankings are pushing the electronics industry to improve their environmental policy.