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June 09, 2008

How green is the new iPhone?

Those of you who have spent all your time online poring over every pixel sent home by the Phoenix lander may be interested to learn that Steve Jobs opened the curtain on the new iPhone at the Worldwide Developer Conference today. My ears perked up at the mention of the 3G's lower price tag ($199), faster Internet browsing, longer battery life, and cool attributes like GPS support.

Woo woo, the 3G even comes in two colors... but alas, neither of them is green. I was hoping to hear some details on how it will improve on the mediocre environmental credentials of its predecessor. But as with fanboy hopes for an upgraded camera and a 32 GB model, no such luck (at least, nothing was mentioned on MacRumors.com's coverage).

Still, as Greenpeace reported last month, there is some good news from Cupertino: Apple has decided to phase out the worst chemicals in its product range, brominated fire retardants (BFRs) and polyvinyl chloride (PVC), by the end of this year. Whether that's the case for the iPhone, I don't know.

Apple is also expanding its take-back program. A message from Jobs on the Apple site says the company is offering free take-back shipping within the U.S. and that iPods can now be turned in at any Apple store worldwide—not just in the U.S.—for free, responsible disposal.

Of course, the company still has room for improvement, as Greenpeace's comments on Jobs's message show...

Posted at 01:51 PM |

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My buycotts & boycotts

  • July 2008
    Started feeling extra-good about buying one of my fave meat substitutes, Tofurky, after learning that its maker, Turtle Island Foods, is an independent, family-owned company (Unlike Boca Foods, which is a subsidiary of Kraft, and Morningstar, which is owned by Kellogg).
  • April 2008
    I'm going to start buying my canned beans from Eden Foods, for two reasons: it uses custom-made cans that don't contain bisphenol A, and it's an independent, family-operated company.
  • February 2008
    From now on, whenever I order takeout or ask for a doggy bag, I’ll make sure to avoid #6 polystyrene containers (and, of course, Styrofoam).
  • January 2008
    My morning yogurt is now garnished with a combination of bulk granola from Oat Cuisine, a locally owned company, and Food for Life's Ezekiel 4:9 cereal. This instead of Kashi Nuggets (Kashi is owned by Kellogg, and the cereal, despite all the "whole grains" messages on the box, isn't organic and probably contains GMOs) or Grape Nuts, which is owned by Altria (Philip Morris), isn't organic, and almost certainly contains GMOs.
  • October 2007
    Until Kimberly-Clark stops destroying virgin North American forests to make its products, I will boycott it and urge others to do so. Feeling outraged? Call K-C's customer service department: 1-888-525-8388 (North America and Puerto Rico only). Following are the brands to avoid. First, the ones I've heard of: Kleenex, Scott, Scottex, Huggies, Kotex, Depend, Viva, Fiesta, Cottonelle. Now a bunch more: Andrex, Block-it, Camelia, DryNites, GoodNites, Kimcare, KimTech, KleenBebé, KleenGard, Little Swimmers, Page, Peaudouce, Pingos, Plenitud, Poise, Pull-Ups, Snugglers, Subtelle, Tela, Le Trefle, WypAll.
  • October 2007
    First Odwalla was bought by Coca-Cola; then Naked Juice was acquired by Pepsico. I'll buy my juice (when I splurge on fresh-squeezed) from Columbia Gorge, which is family-run and all organic.
  • June 2007
    Started buying my organic yogurt from Straus instead of Trader Joe's after hearing from an organics activist that TJ's drives a really hard bargain with organic-food producers. Plus, Straus is local and demonstrates a clear commitment to the environment: its methane digester captures gas from its cows' manure and generates up to 600,000 kWH of electricity per year. I'd rather pay a little extra to support that.
  • March 2007
    Started buying Wildwood soy creamer instead of Silk after learning that White Wave, Silk’s maker, is owned by Dean Foods, the world’s largest dairy processor and distributor. I'm happier supporting the little(r) guy, and Wildwood is just as good—and less expensive.
  • February 2007
    Resolved to buy gas only from BP/Arco and Sunoco after reading the "Pick Your Poison" guide in Sierra. At the very least, no more patronizing Exxon or 76.
  • October 2006
    Started buying Dr. Bronner's soap after seeing Dr. Bronner's Magic Soap Box. I'm impressed by its charitable giving, treatment of employees, leadership in fair trade and organics, and environmental record. More recently, the company has helped facilitate organic and fair-trade certification for olive-oil makers in Israel and Palestine so that it can buy the oil for use in its products.

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