Greenpeace has decided they'll get more attention from praising Apple than by trying to bury it.

The environmental organization is singing hosannas and heysannas to the Cupertino-company for taking a green stand and resigning from the US Chamber of Commerce. Apple walked away from the organization on Monday over Chamber actions seen by Apple as opposing efforts to limit greenhouse gases.

Chamber President Thomas Donohue says his organization does want to see "legislation to address climate change," though the Chamber is against current proposals that, he says, will "significantly raise energy prices, (and) throw more Americans out of work."

Greenpeace revels in the kerfuffle, saying in a post on its website, "Apple has stormed out of the biggest lobby group in the United States. At issue is the US Chamber of Commerce's use of funds to oppose climate change legislation. Apple has done the right thing, and IBM and Microsoft should think different too." (See what they did there?)

The environmental organization says the Chamber should consider the number of jobs that would be created by helping clean up the environment. It's hard to see these two groups hugging it out.

Still, it's praise and adoration for Apple, with the "save the whales" set saying, "The stakes have never been higher for the climate. Apple's move will throw an uncomfortable spotlight on any company that stays on in the Chamber but doesn't act to change its policies."

Interesting. I wonder if Apple thought of that.

[via cnet]

Just 3 years ago, Apple was targeted by Greenpeace as being less environmentally friendly than they could be. Greenpeace even created a mock Apple website in an effort to goad them into action.

Several months later, Apple earned a silver in environmental evaluation (that rating has since turned to gold) from an EPEAT survey (EPEAT is a government operation created to approve computers before they can be purchased by other governmental institutions). Today, they tout "the world's greenest line of notebooks."

This week came the news that Apple has quit the US Chamber of Commerce over what they called the organization's "frustrating" position on global climate change. Specifically, the chamber has opposed a proposal by the Environmental Protection Agency to use the Clean Air Act to set limits on greenhouse gases; a proposal that would most likely take effect only if Congress failed to pass climate legislation.

Apple isn't the only prominent member to leave the chamber for this reason, just the one we happen to write about.

[Via Think Progress]

Macworld has spotted a new page over on Apple's website highlighting their dedication to making their products as environmentally healthy as possible. We've seen this pitch from Apple within the past few years -- they've recently slimmed down their packaging and started using recyclable materials in making their computers. It's pretty interesting to see them making such a push on this issue, but then again it not only helps them sell computers (assuming they don't have to raise prices too high due to the new policies), but of course helps the culture and the Earth at large in terms of making sure our environmental footprints are as small as possible.

The new site includes information about the impact of Apple's products both during manufacture and during usage, as well as reports on product performance, as well as a blog on what they're doing lately. They also have a link to their recycling program so that when you're done with whatever Apple products you're using, you can make sure that those recyclable products are actually recycled.

Pretty good deal all around, and good for Apple to make it clear how committed they are to this issue and acting on it.

In a display of environmental posturing on both sides, Dell lodged a complaint with the advertising industry's self-governing oversight board: The National Advertising Division of the Council of Better Business Bureaus (NAD). The claim? When Apple says it has the "world's greenest family of notebooks," family could be taken to mean all models of MacBook past and present -- including models that weren't built with the environment in mind.

"Common industry usage of 'family' refers to a particular model or group of models, and not the entire notebook line," argued Dell, according to a post on the New York Times' "Green Inc." blog. Dell also complained about Apple's use of gold EPEAT ratings -- an award that many of Apple's competitors have also earned.

Standing behind their claim, Apple effectively said, "that's right, deal with it": Family, in the context of the ad "refers to its whole line of notebooks, taken in toto, [and] not a particular model or group."

The NAD said there was no problem with Apple communicating its EPEAT ratings to consumers, and commended the company for its commitment to creating an entire line of notebooks that meet the highest EPEAT ratings, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Even so, the NAD suggested that consumers could believe that "family" means a line of products (and not all the products) that a company makes. They recommended that Apple use direct comparisons between MacBooks and competitor notebooks to clarify their claims of environmental friendliness. They also recommended that Apple avoid the use of world's greenest "given the potential for overstatement." Apple? Overstatement? That's unpossible.

Apple was happy with the conclusion, with PR spokesman Steve Dowling telling the New York Times that the NAD had confirmed that MacBooks are indeed the world's greenest notebooks when compared to other manufacturers' entire product lines. It appears that Apple has taken to using the word "lineup" instead of "family" on its website.

Dell issued a statement, saying they "commend the NAD for their part in helping ensure companies represent their products' environmental attributes accurately." Dell has previously lodged advertising complaints against Lenovo, and last year the company had to stop using the slogan "the world's most secure notebooks."

It's a bit hot today in Arizona so I stayed in for Earth Day -- I cut the air conditioning and ran the ceiling fans -- and spent part of this day looking at GreenSpot, [App Store link] an iPhone/ iPod touch app that keeps you up to date on all things environmental. It includes tips, podcasts, and articles about everything from food and agriculture to green architecture and buildings. There are also 'issue' areas, with details on climate and energy, the two green hot buttons of late.

The $1.99US app puts all the information in one handy place, and makes it easy to access by topic just about any information you may want.

Podcasts include Sierra Club Radio, and many radio stations that do green programming, as well as some independent audio productions.

It was pretty easy to update myself on the latest green news, but I have these nits to pick. I couldn't find many articles newer than a week old. I don't know if the app is feed based, or people are manually posting material, but the world changes pretty fast, don't ya know, and this app should be more up to date.

Some of the articles links are dead, so that's not such a good thing either. The podcasts I tried all played well, but not from within Greenspot. They launched the QuickTime player, so you then manually have to re-start Greenspot.

None of these problems put me off the application. We've seen how important these issues are, and having this info in your pocket is just another reason why we are so happy the iPhone exists.

There are far worse ways to spend Earth Day than by getting up to date on the latest green news. Most of us will choose those worse ways today, thereby making the point on why it is important to be environmentally conscious.

Screen shots below:

Dell executive Bob Pearson decided to comment on Apple's "green" ad campaign. It was hard to understand. We were confused. Fortunately, Robert was nice enough to translate. The original post, on Dell's site, is here.

"Several Dell folks were surprised and perplexed to see Apple's new 'green' MacBook ad since its release last month and we've been watching the discussions in the blogosphere. After chatting with our environmental teams about the topic, we realized that instead of ignoring it, we should have a conversation about the real meaning of being green from the viewpoint of a Fortune 500 company."

In a desperate attempt to dredge up this environment issue from October, I bought lunch for a few of my subordinates, ordered them to be in the "Sunset Plains" conference room at noon, and told them we would be discussing this.

"Our view is that companies who choose to lead have an obligation to be open and transparent. We have a responsibility to engage in dialogue about the environment, whether we agree or disagree with an individual person or group. It all contributes to the greater good."

We like to sit around and shoot the breeze about stuff. When there isn't enough breeze-shooting, we shoot it ourselves, con-sarn it.

"What is not good is to skip steps, avoid dialogue and pray that people aren't smart enough to figure it out. That doesn't help any of us and it certainly doesn't further the environmental cause for those of us who care deeply about it."

Honestly, talking is the only thing we do well.

Apple aired a new television ad here in the US earlier tonight. It touts the MacBook's low power consumption, recyclable enclosure and lack of some of the toxins present in other computers.

Activist group Greenpeace has been pressuring Apple to adopt more environmentally-friendly production methods and materials over the last couple of years, and last month responded favorably to Apple's efforts to go green.

Additionally, Apple has posted a page to their website describing not only their efforts toward environmental responsibility with the MacBook, but their overall efforts as a company. At the risk of sounding like a tree-hugging hippie, let me say, well done Apple!

With the introduction of EPEAT Gold rated MacBooks and MacBook Pros last week, Apple has definitely been warming up to the environmental movement lately. So, it was only fitting that they would change a small part of System Preferences to reflect the EPEAT rating.

That's right, the Energy Saver icon has changed from an old incandescent bulb to a newer, more energy-efficient fluorescent bulb. Now you will only have to change the energy saver icon every 7 years, but be careful when you dispose of the old icons because they contain mercury (just kidding).

This change has only shown up on the new MacBooks and MacBook Pros. Do you think Apple will eventually update their entire line to have this new icon (and, of course, be EPEAT Gold rated)? We definitely hope so!

Thanks to everyone who sent this in!

Greenpeace is reacting favorably to Apple's new, environmentally friendlier product line, but chides the company for not reducing the amount of some toxic chemicals more quickly.

According to a blog post on Greenpeace's website, Apple's new MacBooks are not entirely free of polyvinyl chloride (PVC), a kind of plastic. Apple says that internal cables now contain no PVC, but Greenpeace wants to see the entire computer free of PVC.

Greenpeace also examines Apple's update to Apple's Greener Apple policies, some of which we highlighted on Tuesday. Apple has promised in this update to have its product line complete PVC free by the end of this year.

The environmental activist organization releases a quarterly Guide to Greener Electronics, where Apple scored a 4.1 (out of 10) last month. Greenpeace's blog post hints that these new changes to its product line will increase its score. Nokia has the highest score of any company, 7 out of 10.

Thanks, Tom!

Apple made a concerted effort today to highlight the reduced impact its new products have on the environment.

This effort all started with Steve Jobs' open letter in 2007, A Greener Apple, announcing a long-term plan to "protect the environment and make our business more sustainable." The letter was released partly in response to a Greenpeace campaign, encouraging Apple to reduce the amount of toxic chemicals in its products and improve its recycling programs.

Today, the star of the show was Apple's new "unibody," a single, complex chassis for new MacBook and MacBook Pro units fabricated from a single brick of aluminum. In a video posted on its website, Apple noted that as a result of the new fabrication process, fewer parts in the laptop means a reduction in weight, size, and the amount of other material necessary to hold the device together.

In a move that surprised everybody and nobody simultaneously, Apple has released a brand-new 24-inch LED Cinema Display to spruce up the languishing product line.

In addition to a new form factor that brings their look in line with newer iMacs (and now the new MacBook and MacBook Pro models announced today), the displays have an iSight camera, speakers, and a MagSafe power connector to charge your laptop. They have a native resolution of 1920 by 1200 pixels.

Also, the displays are more environmentally friendly, moving away from the mercury-vapor backlights to newer LED backlights now available throughout Apple's line of laptops. The surface of the display is glass, with a glossy finish.

The display includes three USB ports, but no FireWire ports featured on older Cinema Displays.

The new 24-inch display will be available in November for $899.

Update: "Old" Cinema Displays still appear to be on Apple's website, so it looks like other screen sizes in the older form factor will continue to be available. For how long, we don't know.

[Via Engadget.]

In its "Let's Rock" event today, Apple introduced three new iPod touch models, all of which are available today.

$229 will get you 8GB of storage, $299 will buy 16GB, and $399 scores 32GB. That's knocking $70 to $100 off the price of each.

The form factor is very slightly thinner, and has a similar tapered back as the iPhone 3G, as rumors suggested. It will also include an exterior volume control and a built-in speaker for "casual listening." There is no microphone built in, but the touch will work with new Apple headphones that include a microphone on the cord. The new headphones are sold separately for $79.

The new models all come with version 2.1 of the iPod touch firmware, which includes the Genius recommendation service mentioned earlier in the presentation. The software also comes with Nike+ built-in, so all you have to buy is the shoe sensor/transmitter. No more dongle.

For those with a current-model iPod touch, the software update is free for those updating from 2.x, and $10 for those upgrading from 1.x.

The new iPod touch models also are more environmentally-friendly, and are constructed with arsenic-free glass and BFR-free, mercury-free, PVC-free, and highly-recyclable components just like the new nano.

[Photo via Engadget.]

An Apple Premium reseller in the UK sent us these photos of an Apple recycling information mailer they received: but the mailer itself was sent in a decidedly non-green way.

From photos the reseller sent, it appears the mailer consisted of two sheets of standard A4-sized paper. Those sheets of paper were placed inside a large, yellow clasp envelope. That envelope was then placed inside a corrugated cardboard box. The box was then mailed to the UK from Switzerland.

While all of these materials are recyclable, it seems like a little bit of a waste to send what could have fit in an everyday DL-sized envelope (that's about the size of a number 10 envelope for us Americans) in ridiculously oversized packaging. Plus, it probably would have saved them a bundle on postage.

Apple has been making a concerted effort to reduce its environmental footprint: not only with the program mentioned in this mailer, but for everything from iPhone packaging to how it makes its displays. Surely this isolated incident isn't representative of the company as a whole, but still. Sheesh.

Good news for iPhone owners who love information but hate wasting paper. AT&T is texting iPhone accounts with messages saying: "We are simplifying your paper bill, removing itemized detail. To view all detail go to att.com/mywireless. Still need full paper bill? Call 611". Check your iPhone for the message.

After all the 500-page iPhone bill hilarity, sanity begins to return to the iPhone world.

Thanks to everyone who sent this in.

Recently, Apple has been the target of much environmental criticism, especially from Greenpeace, and a recent EPEAT survey reinforces some of that negativity regarding the company's lack of environmental attention. EPEAT is a government operation created to approve computers before they can be purchased by other governmental institutions, and the organization gives product ratings based on a multitude of environmental criteria.

Apple has earned five silver medals for several of its MacBook Pro systems, meaning that the company has passed 23 mandatory standards, and 14 of a possible 28 optional standards. The highest rank, gold, is rewarded to computers that have passed all 23 mandatory standards, plus 21 of 28 optional ones. For comparison, Toshiba has earned five golds, 15 silvers, and four bronzes, Dell has earned two golds and 12 silvers for its laptops, and Lenovo has 48 silvers and a single bronze under its belt. Hopefully Apple will step up and make a greater effort to address some of its environmental shortcomings in the near future and go for the gold.

[via MacNN]