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6 green lies that tech companies tell
A lot of tech manufacturers tout their wares as "green" these days. After all, saving the one planet we have is in everyone's interests. But if you're truly trying to go green with your electronics, you need to separate the actual green practices with the truth-challenged "greenwashed" claims.
The truth is that consumer electronics are tough to make eco-friendly, and while some real steps forward are being made by many manufacturers, there are a few little green lies that get told too often. Hit the jump to read the most common questionable green claims that tech companies make all the time.
1. "We use natural components"
Phones like Samsung's Reclaim are said to be green because part of their casing is made from a biodegradable plastic; others promote their use of a natural fiber, like bamboo. It's better for the planet in theory but typically useless in practice; consumer electronics tend to have fused parts, so breaking that "green" component out of the rest of the gadget when it's finished its useful life likely won't happen. You'd be better off buying a fully plastic phone and taking it to a proper e-waste handler who will recycle it in the United States, like Greencitizen.
2. "We use fewer toxins"
Samsung has a new line of LCD displays that use less mercury, which is great. But when you see this claim thrown around, ask where the electronics were made, and find out what your own state's rules are on these toxins. Chances are the manufacturer is just hyping a green improvement they're now legally required to implement. It's still good for the planet, but it's green-at-gunpoint.
3. "Our packaging is greener"
Yakking up "less packaging and soy-based inks!" is so 1999. And companies do this not necessarily to be green, but to save themselves money. Fuji's new EnviroMAX battery is a poster child for this claim: a new disposable battery that says it uses few heavy metals (i.e. the same metals that make greener rechargeable batteries rechargeable), comes in post-consumer-content recycled packaging (i.e. like everything in your house today) and is "landfill friendly." Note to Fuji: everything this side of nuclear waste is "landfill friendly" in a modern landfill. How about suggesting clients return their drained EnviroMAX batteries to a proper recycler?
4. "We believe in sustainability"
Like swine flu, sustainability is everywhere, and it's catching. But it's a virulent claim that's almost impossible to verify, because a single standard of "sustainability" doesn't exist. It can mean a lot of things — from true supply-chain analysis of every inch of a product's lifecycle, to the manufacturer's head office making double-sided photocopies. To see through this one, you can research company websites to verify claims, or check out Greenpeace's rankings of manufacturers.
5. "No toxic substances inside"
Electronics are tough to make without some toxins, like heavy metals and off-gassing plastics, so beware of claims that say they have none. A few years ago, Apple and Dell claimed their computers used "mercury-free LED lights" — except the LED lights never used mercury in the first place. It's quite likely their LED lights were also arsenic-free. And plutonium-free. And Kryptonite-free. Some of these claims may be true, but you're more likely to see a "less toxins" claim be closer to the truth, and like we said above, that may be because The Man wants it that way.
6. "Made with recycled materials"
This can be a bait-and-switch. Motorola's Renew is made in part from recycled plastic. But it's not plastic from old Motorola phones, it's from used water bottles. While keeping water bottles out of a landfill somewhere is noble, it hides the unpleasant truth that plastics in consumer electronics tend to be contaminated with the heavy metals inside those same electronics, making them harder to recycle and re-use.
By Nancy at 9:26 AM ON 10/01/09
Your artical on green(er) products and manufacturers claims brought home what I suspected for years. The artical made me smile. Thanks.
By roshinobi at 10:03 AM ON 10/01/09
Anytime a marketing person uses the word "toxins," they lose any hope of selling to me. If the best word you can throw at me is a catch-all for "bad stuff," why should I trust you?
By puff3456 at 10:38 AM ON 10/01/09
What is wrong with a company doing something "green" because it saves them money rather than because they believe it will "save the planet?" If a company goes "green" it is either doing so because it will save money directly, i.e. cheaper packaging, or earn more money through increased sales. To think that a company (especially those often discussed here) is going green purely due to their love of the earth is naive at best.
By Christopher at 10:49 AM ON 10/01/09
@puff: The issue isn't eliminating waste to trim costs. That sort of thing is a staple of economic growth no matter how you cut it. The issue is when companies say they're doing something green and at the end of the day all it amounts to is an elaborate marketing effort to mark up prices (ie "green tax," see "Apple tax") with no appreciable benefit to the consumer. It just so happens that an entire industry has sprung up around "going green," eighty to ninety percent of which exists for the sole purpose of making your green their green.
By Giggity at 1:23 PM ON 10/01/09
"It just so happens that an entire industry has sprung up around "going green," eighty to ninety percent of which exists for the sole purpose of making your green their green."
Nicely put, Christopher
By Ted Smith at 3:52 PM ON 10/01/09
Thanks for this article!
For a comprehensive, credible source of information about electronics and sustaninability, check out the Electronics TakeBack Coalition at http://www.computertakeback.com/index.htm
By nop277 at 5:18 AM ON 10/02/09
i've grown up not trusting anything a company tells me unless i am able to verify it myself, so i'm not surprised lol. i find articles on the runarounds interesting always.
By Larry M at 8:41 AM ON 10/02/09
You wrote "It's quite likely their LED lights were also arsenic-free." Actually, LEDs do contain arsenic. They are typically made from Gallium Arsenide or Gallium Aluminum Arsenide or Gallium Arsenide Nitride or related compounds. But arsenic is a relatively benign and naturally occuring substance, not a serious toxin anyway.
By rsg at 12:04 PM ON 10/02/09
Your comment relative to "mercury-free LED lights" is really off-base. The alternative to LED backlighting in the LCD panels of Apple and Dell products are cold-cathode fluoresecent lamps which contain a few miligrams of mercury each.
While I'm on the subject, why no discussion of compact fluorescent lamps? Yeah, they use less energy but they are loaded with mercury. How many people know this and dispose of them properly?
By Default at 4:20 PM ON 10/02/09
Gas cars, they use combustion engines and produce carbon emissions, right? What happens when you completely remove carbon emissions from car? Your car won't go.
The very thing we say causes damage is what makes the device effective or easier to produce.
By Madeo at 10:16 AM ON 10/03/09
U guys complain too much.
By mark at 11:57 AM ON 10/03/09
the thing about the mercuy free leds makes sense, because LED's are an alternative to CFL's and CFL's do contain mercury. also i dont want lead free products lead solder is more reliale than tin solder.
By thisisonlyatest at 3:36 PM ON 10/04/09
I think instead of calling things "eco-friendly" or "green" we should call them money-savers... then everyone will buy them regardless of the issues.
Side note about CFL bulbs... When I lived in an apartment, all my bulbs were CFL. I used them for two years now and they sit in storage in my house waiting for the incandescent bulbs that came with the house to burn out so they can be used again.
In fact, I have an old CFL which likely cost $15 (for one bulb) 10 years ago and it still works (although it too waits for an incandescent to go out so it can be used again). So sure, fluorescent bulbs contain mercury but if that mercury is only a tiny amount and the bulbs themselves can last as long as 15 years, it's a small price to pay.
By drinkwater at 8:59 PM ON 10/04/09
Thanks it is good article to refresh about what is 'eco-friendly'. I agree that 'green' is a kind of emerging new marketing point rather than earth-caring nowadays. Anyway we can say it is better than before and getting better. Hope the writer can show the right way for the electronics makers need to go.
By raleigh workers' compensation lawyers at 4:29 PM ON 10/23/09
Great article! I have heard those lines from "green" companies and am happy that now I know the truth.
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