Apple commits to greener products

In its first public commitment to reducing its environmental impact Apple has revealed new manufacturing policies which will eliminate arsenic, polyvinyl chloride (PVC) and brominated flame retardants (BFRs) from current products by 2008.

The company also plans to recycle 30% of its own electronic waste by 2010 according to a letter from Steve Jobs on the company’s website.

Later this year the company plans to introduce Macs with displays backlit by light-emitting diodes (LEDs), which are free of mercury, while new Macs in 2007 will have arsenic-free glass in their monitors.

The company plans to completely eliminate the use of arsenic in all of its displays by the end of 2008 and to reduce and eventually eliminate the use of mercury as soon possible subject to technical and economic constraints.

Apple will also begin taking back unwanted iPods for free recycling at its stores around the world beginning this summer. It has previously only provided this service at US stores.

The new measures will move Apple off the bottom of the Greenpeace Green Electronics Guide, which rates large PC and mobile phone makers’ recycling and toxic content policies. It is now in 10th place out of 14.