Wondering if one computer manufacturer is more environmentally responsible than another?

The Clean Computer Campaign, a project of the Silicon Valley Toxics Coalition, researched major computer corporations operating in the USA to see how responsible these corporations were to their consumers regarding three issues:

• the use of hazardous material use in computers,
• the ability to upgrade one’s computer
• the ability to return old computers back to the producer for safe reuse and recycling

• the corporation’s policy of hazardous material use and phase out,
• component or product take back from their customers,
• use of recycled material in new products, disposal practices including the export of scrap overseas and
• the corporation’s view of how extensive their responsibility should be for their end of life products.

A survey of each website was then undertaken. It could be generously assumed that corporations are too busy to answer written correspondence and phone calls from the public concerning their material use and waste management practices for their old products. Therefore each web site was examined using the following methods:

• Information about their hazardous materials and/or recycling and take-back policy was searched for under general corporate information and Services and Support for customers. This sometimes linked to corporate reports or even an environment link.
• A search was also done on each internal search engine and glossary using a combination of the following the words: environment; health and safety; hazardous materials; flame retardants; mercury; recycling; product stewardship; disposal; take-back; upgrade, Design for environment.
• Finally, a quick search of product specification information revealed the availability of any more information

A simple scoring system out of 5 points is used to denote the information found on each web site.

Take back of old or unwanted products

No information given or no operational policy 0
Some component take-back or take-back for large customers 1
Full take-back of end of life equipment from all customers 2

Upgrades

No information given or unable to find 0
Product specific information given 1

Hazardous material information

No information given 0
Some information given; some reference in corporate policy 1
Product specific information available 2

Apple	4
IBM	4
Compaq/Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC)	3
Hewlett Packard	3
Fujitsu	2
Toshiba	2
Gateway	2
Dell	2
Sony USA	2
Sharp	2
Unisys	2
Matsushita/Panasonic	1
Packard-Bell/NEC	1
Samsung	1
NCR	1
Hitachi	1
Daewoo	0
Acer	0
AST	0

Background

This research is timely. The high tech industry is the fastest expanding industrial sector. Over 50% of US households own a computer and the average life span of a computer is falling to about two years. This means computer waste is building. Last year over 12 million computers were obsolete and within four years over 315 million computers in the USA will become obsolete. Most computer scrap is currently landfilled although the majority, three-quarters of all computers ever bought in the USA, are sitting in people’s homes basements, attics or cupboards because consumers don’t know what to do with them.

The European Union is also facing a 6 million ton/year electronic waste problem. It is currently attempting to pass legislation that would make producers responsible for post-consumer electrical and electronic waste. This means producers or importers of electrical and electronic goods would have to pay the waste management costs for all their end of life products as well as phase out certain hazardous materials in new products by 2004. This draft legislation is being challenged by the American Electronics Association and the Electronics Industry Association who claim such requirements would hinder the export of American products to Europe and thus constitute a barrier to free trade under World Trade Organization ( WTO) rules. All computer corporations operating in the USA are members of the American Electronics Association.

Explanatory Comments

Apple has an extensive website on its environmental policy and gives the best consumer information on materials used in each computer model. Each computer model has an accompanying APES table of information. This stands for Apple Product Environmental Specifications which measures a range of attributes against eco-labels and other criteria. The attributes encompass environmental policy and management; product Design; batteries; energy consumption; noise characteristics; emissions; electrical safety; ergonomics; packaging; and recycling. The product Design category encompasses detailed information about hazardous heavy metals, brominated flame retardants, ozone depleting substances and dioxin generating materials. These and other listings are then assessed against five different audits. The results are presented in a matrix for each model. Their Design for Environment program aims to improve on recyclability of materials, the elimination of banned, restricted, toxic or hazardous constituents and the improvement of material and energy conservation. Extensive information on upgrades is included for each model.

The company takes back batteries and toner cartridges but has no system in place for its products. It advises consumers to donate them or contact their local authority for information about electronic waste disposal options.

IBM replied to the Clean Computer Campaign questionnaire by sending a copy of their 1999 Environment & Well-Being Report. Their web site, under Healthy Computing, details their take-back operations in various countries beginning with Switzerland in 1989, South Africa in 1992, eight more European, Middle Eastern and African countries in 1993 and ‘selected customers’ in the USA in 1997. To better co-ordinate and manage product end of life management activities, IBM established a new Global Asset recovery Services organization to provide a global focus for the development of remanufacturing, refurbishment and demanufacturing. The company "expects to reap further efficiencies in managing used and surplus computer parts."

IBM’s Design for Environment research arm has formulated a lead-free solder for use in circuit board manufacturing and they are also investigating the use of renewable natural polymers to replace fossil-fuel based resins. IBM gives detailed material information about their Aptiva computer model including the phase out of certain hazardous materials and types of plastic resin used. The company supports its environmental policy with technical expertise from its Engineering Center for Environmentally Conscious Products.

Compaq/Digital has an extensive section on Environment, Health and Safety and Product Stewardship. Digital claims to be a pioneer in product take-back in the late-1980s and now offers a complete product disposition and recycling service for computers and related products. Their recovery centers process more than 30 million pounds of computers and related equipment each year resulting in 1-2% of returned materials sent to landfill. Details about how a private consumer can return their old computer is not detailed on the web site. Information about hazardous materials focuses on the company’s goal to eliminate brominated flame retardants (BFRs) and their efforts to influence the plastic resin industry to reformulate their products to eliminate the use of BFRs. Digital’s on-line Environment, Health and Safety Progress Report is at http://www.digital.com/info/ehs

Hewlett Packard offers a variety of product end of life return programs in a number of geographic areas. Each month, HP reuses or recycles more than 3.5 million pounds of material at its three sites in France, Germany and California. HP’s Environmental Policy is to Design products to be safe to use and to minimize hazardous materials as well as to inform and encourage suppliers to do the same. Policy on specific hazardous materials was not found. Laser Jet printer cartridges are taken-back in the US.

Fujitsu has an extensive environmental section on their Japanese web site. Here the company states its goal to recycle 90% of its waste products by the end of year 2000 in keeping with new Japanese legislation on take-back for waste from electrical and electronic equipment. In 1997 the company achieved a high return rate from its corporate clients. The company also manufactures specific Green Products which use ‘no hazardous substances’ and which achieves a recyclable rate of 75% or more as well as promoting Green Procurement from its suppliers. It is assumed that the life cycle approach to product Design is implemented outside Japan whereas the take-back for corporate clients in the USA may not be since no information was given on the USA web site.

Toshiba has an extensive environmental section on its Toshiba UK web site – but nothing on its USA web site. The company claims to have pioneered the development of cadmium-free batteries and has implemented Design for the Environment to substitute hazardous materials with less hazardous and more recyclable materials such as replacing metal coated plastic housings with metal screening. The company takes back toner cartridges in the UK but it is not clear if this is implemented in the USA.

Dell has an extensive take-back service for their major customers, which is operational for a minimum of 20 units or 10 complete computer systems. It reimburses the client for the value of any reusable or re-saleable equipment. There was no information given about the use of hazardous materials in products.

Gateway offered no information about take-back on their web site. They do mention hazardous material policy in their supplier’s criteria but no information is given with product specifications.

Sony USA. Sony USA is taking part in a take-back project with the state of Minnesota to explore financially viable recycling operations for electronic waste. Sony considers its role in shared product responsibility to be one of product Designer – not waste collector or waste manager. It gave no information about any current take-back services for its products. Sony has an environment, safety and health section with detailed info about hazardous waste management from their facilities with some minimal information about materials used in some products.

Sharp mentions a take-back service for their toner cartridges in some areas but does not expand on this. The company has no information on materials used in their products.

Matsushita/Panasonic states on its European web site that it produced the first ever alkaline battery made without cadmium or mercury in 1992. There is no information on its US web site about take-back or hazardous material use.

NCR offers no component/ product take-back or hazardous material information on their web site. They offer a service that helps retailers with refurbishment and disposal.

Packard-Bell/NEC gave no information on neither take-back nor hazardous materials use. It did have an extensive guide to upgrades. In 1996 the two companies merged.

Unisys was the only company to complete the Questionnaire. The company operates a take-back service for its major customers and end of life products are sent to two recovery plants. The company did not elaborate a company policy on hazardous material phase out and this information was not given in the web site. The web site only gave information about upgrades.

Hitachi had no information on its web site about hazardous materials or take-back policy or environmental concerns in general.

CONCLUSION

Except for Apple Computer and the description of IBM’s Aptiva model, detailed consumer information about the environmental attributes and types of materials used in specific computer models is not available. In some cases corporations list their generic Design for Environment policy and goals and mention specific examples of hazardous material phase outs. In other cases no mention is made about any environmental criteria and the web site exists solely to place orders.

The recyclability of computers is mentioned by all corporations who have a Design for Environment policy. However Producer responsibility for computer take-back is limited to large buyers and even then only a few corporations offer this service. Take-back service for private households extends only to batteries and printer toner cartridges and this is practiced by only a few companies. Some corporations mention their take-back or asset recovery centers in Europe and Japan where national legislation has been passed or is pending for producer take-back of all waste from electrical and electronic equipment. There is a distinct lack of information given to North American consumers about their recycling or disposal options for out of date computers.

However, the fact that some detailed information exists about the success of recycling old computers from corporate clients makes the demand for a take-back service for ALL customers feasible. The fact that some countries in Europe and Asia have passed take-back legislation exposes the double standards operating in North America. Similarly the fact that two producers can give product-specific environmental information sets the stage for all producers to do so.
 
 

WHAT YOU CAN DO

• Do you want information about hazardous materials in you computer?
• Do you want to know what producers are doing to clean up their products?
• Do you want the producer of your computer to take back their out of date products and recycle them?
• Do you want the same take-back service from your computer producer that consumers have in Holland, Germany, Sweden, Denmark, Switzerland and Japan?

1. Send an email to your computer manufacturer and demand to know what they are doing to phase out hazardous material is their products and when they will offer you a take-back service.

2. Send an email to your computer manufacturer and ask them to stop supporting the American Electronics Association lobby against European efforts to clean up the electronic industry.

3. Contact your state’s Department of Environment or provincial Minister of Environment and demand legislation that will make producer’s financially and physically responsible for post consumer product waste.

Visit the Clean Computer Campaign web site at for more information about Producer Responsibility and hazardous materials in computers.

Web Site Addresses

http://www.acer.com
http://www.apple.com
http://www.ast.com
http://www.compaq.com
http://www.digital.com
http://www.daewoo.com
http://www.dell.com
http://www.fujitsu.com
http://www.gateway.com
http://www.HP.com
http://www.hitachi.com
http://www.ibm.com
http://www.panasonic.com
http://www.nec-computers.com/contact.html
http://www.ncr.com
http://www.packardbell.com
http://www.samsung.com
http://www.sharp-usa.com
http://www.sel.sony.com/SEL/
http://www.toshiba.co.jp/env/english
http://www.unisys.com

Table 1.

Corporation web site research for the USA and Canada examining the information and policy on hazardous material use in computers, product upgrades and take-back practices.

Report Card questionnaire and letter sent to computer corporations

September 10, 1999

Dear (contact name)

I am writing to you on behalf of the Clean Computer Campaign, a new environmental network whose mission is to promote clean production and clean products within the computer industry. As you are no doubt aware, many European countries are passing legislation on Producer Responsibility for waste from electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE). The European Union is harmonizing these initiatives within a draft Directive which provides for certain hazardous material phase outs, financial responsibility and reuse/recycling rates. We are surveying the views of major computer manufacturers that do business in North America on the issues of product take-back and cleaner product Design. We would be grateful if you would answer the following short survey.

The aim of this survey is to help increase consumer awareness of product Design and waste management policies. We will send you the results for any additional comments you would like to make before we release it publicly later this year. We expect large institutional buyers, state employees, individual consumers and local agencies to be particularly interested in the results of our survey.

We would appreciate your response by mail or fax by September 30, 1999 to Beverly Thorpe, at the Montreal address below or by fax. Please do not hesitate to contact me by phone or email if you have any further questions. I look forward to hearing from you. Thank you in advance for your cooperation and your time and help in providing consumers with this valuable information.

Yours sincerely
 
 

Beverly Thorpe, Program Director
 

MATERIALS TAKE BACK POLICY:
1. Does your company currently have in place a program to take back computers sold to major customers in the US? If yes, what percentage of computers sold to major customers in the USA are returned to you?

<20% 21-40% 41-60% 61-80% 81-100%

2. Does your company currently have in place a program to take back computers sold to individual consumers in the USA? If yes, what percentage of computers sold to the general public in the USA are returned to you?

<20% 21-40% 41-60% 61-80% 81-100%

3. If you have a take back program in effect, how do you notify customers of its existence?

5. If you reuse components, please specify which ones.

6. What are the biggest impediments/barriers to reuse?

7. What would make it easier to reuse computers or computer components?
 

RECYCLING:
8. Do you own recycling operation(s) in the USA? Elsewhere? ____yes ____no

If yes, how many and at what location(s)?

Do you contract with other firms to do computer or components recycling? If so, please identify the firms, their function, and their location.

9. What percentage of your returned computers are recycled in the USA?

<20% 20-40% 41-60% 61-80% 81-100%

10. What percentage of the computers returned to you in the USA are recycled in

____Canada ____Mexico _____China _____Taiwan ______Korea

other (please specify)

If returned computers are recycled in more than one country, please state which materials are recycled in which country, eg circuit boards in Quebec, Canada, plastics in China, etc.

11. Do you recycle the plastics used in the computers that are returned to you? If yes, what percentage is recycled? Please identify by type of plastic, eg PVC, ABS, etc.

None <20% 21-40% 41-60% 61-80% 81-100%

12. How and where do you recycle the plastics? Please describe

13. Do you recycle the metal used in the computers that are returned to you? If yes, what percentage is recycled? Please identify by type of metal, eg gold, copper, etc.

None <20% 21-40% 41-60% 61-80% 81-100%

14. How and where do you recycle the metals? Please describe

15. Do you recycle the glass used in the computer monitors that are returned to you? If yes, how and where is this recycled?

16. What are the biggest impediments/barriers to recycling materials and components in computers?

RECYCLED CONTENT

17. Does your company use recycled, material in new computers?

Yes No

18. If yes, what % of recycled material is currently used in new computers? Please detail by:

>plastics: 1-5%; 6-10%; 11-20; 21-30; 31-40; 41-50; 51-60; 61-70; 71-80; 81-90; 91-100

metals: 1-5%; 6-10%; 11-20; 21-30; 31-40; 41-50; 51-60; 61-70; 71-80; 81-90; 91-100

glass: 1-5%; 6-10%; 11-20; 21-30; 31-40; 41-50; 51-60; 61-70; 71-80; 81-90; 91-100

components: 1-5%; 6-10%; 11-20; 21-30; 31-40; 41-50; 51-60; 61-70; 71-80; 81-90; 91-100

19. What are the biggest impediments/barriers to using recycled materials in new computers?

20. What would make it easier to incorporate re-used or recycled material and components in new computers?

DISPOSAL

21 . Please estimate what percentage of computers sold by your company since 1990 have gone to landfill?

<20% 21-40% 41-60% 61-80% 81-100% Don't know

22. Please estimate what percentage of computers sold by your company since 1990 have been incinerated ?

<20% 21-40% 41-60% 61-80% 81-100% Don't know

MATERIAL PHASE OUTS:

The European Union has proposed the phase out of the following materials in electronic products (with some use exceptions) by 2004.

23. Do your computers include any of the following materials>

Lead yes, in_________________________ noCadmium yes, in________________________ noHexavalent Chromium Yes, in _______________________ no

Mercury Yes, in _______________________ no

Polybrominated Flame Retardants Yes, in ___________________ ____ no

24. Do you use PVC plastic in your computers or in your packaging?

Yes, in ______________________ No

25. Do you have any plans to phase out and substitute any of the above materials in your computers? If so, by when?

26. What are the major impediments/barriers to phasing out the above materials, if this is an issue?

27. Do you include materials requirements for your suppliers? For example, do you ask any of your suppliers for recycled/reused content or to prohibit or restrict certain materials? Please describe.

PRODUCER RESPONSIBILITY

28. To what degree do you believe computer manufacturers should be financially responsible for managing end of life products? End of life is here defined as computers which have been thrown away by corporate or individual consumers because they no longer function, are outdated or are not passed on to other people. Financially and/or physically responsible encompasses all or some of the activities and costs of collection, recycling,reuse, transport and disposal of computer waste.

• Not at all
• Partly (explain which part of the product chain should apply to producers)
• Fully responsible for entire life cycle

29. Would you support legislation supporting: