Apple: Withdrawing green certification a ‘mistake’

Apple reversed itself on Monday and said its decision to withdraw from an environmental certification program was a “mistake.”

“We’ve recently heard from many loyal Apple customers who were disappointed to learn that we had removed our products from the EPEAT rating system,” Bob Mansfield, Apple’s vice president of hardware engineering, wrote in an open letter. “I recognize that this was a mistake.”

Apple withdrew from EPEAT, which stands for the Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tool, last week. The program certifies electronics that are energy-efficient and easy to recycle. 

Apple’s move to abandon EPEAT opened the possibility that it could lose government contracts. The city of San Francisco, for example, said it would stop buying Apple products over the decision. 

Apple reportedly decided to leave the program in part because the batteries on some of its new laptops are glued to the case, which makes it harder to take apart and recycle. 

But the company did not promise that it would change the design of its products to meet EPEAT’s recycling standards. Mansfield said all “eligible” Apple products will rejoin the program. 

“Starting today, all eligible Apple products are back on EPEAT,” he wrote.

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