Greenpeace fired some critical words to Apple for its massive carbon emissions. The majority of these emissions, the report claims, are linked to the lifespan of the products that the company produces.
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Apple may not be as green as advertised
The report accuses Apple of exaggerating its environmental achievements despite being ahead of other tech giants in environmental protection. However, the report also points out that Apple has been inflicting huge impacts on the environment by encouraging users to switch products quickly.
The product life cycle is a big issue, as the iPhone generates about 80 percent of its carbon emissions over its entire life cycle, most of which occurs during the manufacturing process.
A trend towards reduced carbon footprints
With the exception of Nvidia, all companies have committed to reducing absolute global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in their supply chains by 2030. However, Apple’s commitment is by far the biggest.
Apple was also praised for providing meaningful help to its suppliers, such as financial support, knowledge transfer, or incentives to assist with the energy transition. Only Apple has taken meaningful steps to provide such support.
While Apple may be too quick to claim that their products are “carbon neutral,” they are the only company that has both set a strong example on how to move their operations away from fossil fuels. Moreover, they are actively getting their suppliers to be powered by 100% renewable energy by 2030.
Gary Cook, the global climate policy lead at Stand.earth, highlights that other companies should follow Apple’s example and invest in their suppliers’ transition to clean energy.
Supply chain remains a critical issue
Apple, as the only one of the six tech giants that has set renewable energy targets for its suppliers, deserves credit for its environmental efforts. At the same time, the report also highlights the significant amount of carbon emissions in the product life cycle from the production process. The report points out that other companies need to do more to reduce the absolute global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions within their supply chains.Greenpeace is calling on consumers to think more carefully about the environmental impact of their purchases and use of electronic products. The non-profit further asks companies to do more to reduce the carbon emissions of their products throughout their life cycle.
