Green Design

Clean Production Action report: Greening Consumer Electronics - from Hazardous Material to Sustainable Solutions shows how leading companies are moving to safer chemicals throughout their supply chain. This report was presented to the European Parliament in October 2009 to influence the revision of the Directive on the Restriction of Hazardous Substances (RoHS) in electronic products.

Apple, Sony Ericsson and Major Suppliers are Leading the Industry in Removing Chlorine and Bromine Based Substances from Electronic Products. Click here for the report.

Click here for more information about the conference.

CPA is supporting the following initiatives to promote green design in the electronic sector:

1. Creating tools and standards that leverage greener electronic products.
2. Supporting policies that leverage safer chemical and material use in electronic products.

Defining procurement standards for green electronics
CPA is on the Board of the Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tool (EPEAT), which registers computers and soon to be other electronic products based on their environmental performance. The standard uses 51 criteria to evaluate products across their life cycle. Products listed on EPEAT are more energy efficient, have less toxic substances and will be taken back by producers at the end of life. Success of EPEAT shows that there is market support for producer take back and green design:

• The EPEAT green computer procurement system ended 2007 with over $60 billion in contracts.
• The US federal government is mandated to buy at least 95% of its computer products through EPEAT.
• Over 500 products are listed on the registry.

Click here to learn more about the products registered on EPEAT.

Applying the Green Screen for Safer Chemicals to chemicals of concern in the electronic sector: The Green Screen is a scientifically robust chemical screening tool that allows companies to select chemicals that are inherently safer from an environmental and human health perspective. Click here to learn more about the Green Screen and our analysis on safer flame retardants

Defining a deeper shade of green for sustainable plastic use in electronic products.

In 2009 Clean Production Action released the Plastics Scorecard to aid companies in choosing safer plastics.

Additional Resources:

Download CPA Factsheets:

• Apple’s “elemental” approach restricting chlorine and bromine is a milestone achievement in environmental protection


• How Producer Responsibility for Product Take-Back can Promote Eco-Design (2007)


• Progress towards PVC and BFR Elimination by Leading Electronic Manufacturers


• Electronic Waste: A Public Health Issue


• Deca-BDE: Human Health and Environmental Concerns

Greenpeace’s Green Electronics Guide which evaluates the environmental performance of leading electronic companies on a quarterly basis.

With the emergence of new regulations on high hazard chemicals, many leading electronic companies have invested in the precautionary approach to chemical management to reduce liability and better ensure safer chemical and material use in electronic products.

1. Increasing regulations on halogenated chemicals (bromine and chlorine based chemicals), heavy metals and other high hazard chemicals:


• REACH—a new chemical policy that requires public disclosure and safer substitution for high hazard chemicals, including those that persist and accumulate in the environment and or are linked to cancer and reproductive harm.
• US and EU chemical regulations (Washington and Maine have banned the use of certain brominated flame retardants (BFRs) in electronic products, Norway and Sweden are looking to ban a broad range of BFRs including TBBPA the largest BFR in commerce).
• European Union’s Restriction of Hazardous Substances (RoHS) which currently bans certain applications of mercury, lead, certain brominated flame retardants (PBDEs, PBBs), and cadmium, is set for revision in 2010.
2. National Electronics Sustainability Initiative that establishes a federal program to provide incentives and resources for green chemistry and engineering developments in the electronic sector.


• Establishes a National Clean Electronics Research and Development fund that supports the rapid development of electronic products that are cleaner, safer and more sustainable throughout their life cycle. For more information, click here.
3. State and federal based Green Chemistry Initiatives like California’s Green Chemistry initiative that will close data gaps, require restrictions on substances of high concern and promote green chemistry research and development.

Resources

To learn more about REACH and other European chemical policy changes, visit Chemsec’s website.

To learn more about California’s Green Chemistry Initiative click here.