Environmental terrorism?
Tuesday, October 16, 2007 
One of my least favourite organisations (Greenpeace) has been complaining about my favourite (Apple) because, they claim, Apple's gorgeous new iPhone contains "two types of hazardous substances". Not for the first time, the stunt backfired when the green crusaders were forced to admit that "All components tested appear to be compliant with the requirements of the EU RoHS directive". See HERE.
Journalist and blogger Trevor Butterworth put the whole thing in perspective when he wrote:
Greenpeace has been badgering Apple to go green for quite a while now, and the campaign has generated massive publicity for the organization. Hundreds of news stories have been written - and the latest crop note that another environmental group, the Center for Environmental Health (CEH) is going to sue Apple on the basis of this new Greenpeace study and because these chemicals are a hazard to health. But it's hard, given Greenpeace's repeated failure to show a demonstrable risk to consumers from the chemicals in the iPhone, or the iPod, or the iMac, not to see this campaign as a case of environmental terrorism.
Full article HERE.
As it happens, I had dinner recently with an American friend from San Diego. During the evening he whipped out his iPhone and showed me how it works. I cannot begin to describe it. All I can say is, it looks and feels like a truly stunning piece of equipment, a genuine leap forward. I can't wait for November 9 when it's launched in Europe. Chemicals or no chemicals, I want one. And thanks to Greenpeace, I'm determined to have one.
Reader Comments (1)
Keep the ravenous consumption up mate. At this rate you may be lucky to crash & burn the planet b4 you turn 50.
"Electrical and electronic equipment is the fastest-growing category of waste across the EU, with an estimated 17-20kg per person produced every year. The UK alone generated about one million tonnes of waste equipment last year," energy minister Malcolm Wicks.