Electronic waste: Part II
SpyMac
February 15, 2005
By Judy Westcott
Apple shareholders may be confronted by environmentalists concerned about electronic waste recycling at the company’s annual shareholder meeting this spring.
The Computer Take-Back Campaign (CTBC) has made Apple its “2005 Corporate Target” in an effort to get the computer manufacturer to change its “very old and outdated” policy regarding electronic waste recycling, says Gopal Dayaneni, a spokesperson for the Silicon Valley Toxic Coalition, which is one of several environmental groups promoting the CTBC.
“We have written to Apple requesting a meeting with their top officials to discuss environmental issues and their recycling policy,” Dayaneni told Spymac. “If they don’t respond to our request, we’re prepared to take it all the way, which includes having a presence at the shareholders meeting.
”This is the same group that wore mock hazardous-material safety suits while holding a noon-hour vigil outside Apple Computer's Cupertino headquarters in January. The protestors, who claim Apple’s policies on e-waste are lagging behind personal-computer industry rivals Hewlett-Packard and Dell, hoisted placards criticizing Apple, including one reading “iPod = iWaste”. A banner depicted an arm tossing an iPod into the trash. The group held a larger rally at the annual Macworld Expo in San Francisco the following day.
The letter, addressed to Apple CEO and Chairman, Steve Jobs, requests a meeting before March 15 to “discuss Apple’s willingness to embrace producer responsibility for electronic waste”.
“CTBC is assessing the next steps in our campaign. We would like an opportunity to discuss this issue with you personally in advance of your Annual Meeting of shareholders. We would like to give Apple the same opportunity we gave Dell, (1) to sign our Joint Statement of Principles on Producer Responsibility for U.S. Electronic Waste and (2) to receive positive recognition in our next Electronics Report Card. We believe that with Apple joining with us, HP and Dell, we will be in a much stronger position to prevail over those who are currently opposing producer responsibility. We’d like an opportunity to present our analysis to you of why we believe this to be in Apple own interest,” the letter goes on to say.
Dayaneni says the CTBC would rather have Apple work together with the group than fighting with each other publicly. “Many of us are Mac users who are disappointed with Apple’s policies. We see Apple as an innovator on the cutting edge of technology, with very old and outdated e-waste recyling policies. We expect more.
”Apple has not announced a date for the annual shareholders meeting. The last one was held in mid-April 2004.Please stay tuned next week for information on the recycling policies of Dell, HP and Apple.
http://www.spymac.com/news/index.php?contentid=1874/id/6821607/
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