toxic waste

Make Beautiful Music with Eco-Friendly Audio Systems

jplatt — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 13:25:22 -0400

Love music? Love the environment? Then let's talk about this year's greenest audio devices.

Like all electronics, audio systems can contain all kinds of toxic materials. They aren't always easily recyclable, and they often come with too much packaging. They also tend to use a lot of power, a critical concern when we're trying to make things more energy efficient.

To help make sure you're choosing the greenest audio components, MetaEfficient has named the Greenest Audio Systems of 2008. Winners include the Pure iPod dock, the Samsung SWA-4000 Wireless Rear Stereo Amplifier, and the Panasonic SC-PT650 home theater system. Several brands of speakers and receivers are also rated.

All of these devices ranked well on energy efficiency, and often use eco-friendly manufacturing processes.

There are other ways you can "green" your music. You can buy any number of solar chargers to keep your MP3 players juiced up. Buying music digitally can also be green, since it doesn't involve any manufacturing or shipping.

Got other ways you keep your tunes eco-friendly? Post 'em here!

Apple Continues Greening Trend with Newest iPod

jplatt — Fri, 12 Sep 2008 10:54:41 -0400

Apple isn't the greenest company on the planet -- but it's constantly making improvements.

The company's latest step is this week's announcement of its "cleanest" iPod yet, the newest version of the iPod nano. The device is manufactured with arsenic-free glass; contains no Brominated Flame Retardants (BFR), mercury or PVC; and is said to be highly recyclable because it is made with aluminum and glass.

"We want to be just really environmentally sensitive with these products. We ship a lot of them," said Apple CEO Steve Jobs. "We're constantly worried about reducing the size of the packaging and the transportation carbon that we spend to move these around the world. But the biggest thing we worry about are the toxics."

Greenpeace has long criticized Apple for not being environmentally friendly enough (see their old "Green My Apple" campaign, a name Apple itself has co-opted to embody its environmental mission). But the environmental group praised Apple's announcement, while also calling on Apple to continue to go greener with their computers and iPhones.

The new fourth-generation iPod nano will be available this month in two models: 8GB for $149, and 16GB for $199. Macworld has a complete review.

Another Way to Recycle (or Sell) Your Electronics

jplatt — Thu, 31 Jul 2008 10:10:03 -0400

Even though I have written about ways to recycle your old electronics several times, I still have a few old devices gathering dust here on my desk. So when an electronics recycling website called Second Rotation relaunched as Gazelle this Monday, I took notice.

Gazelle works remarkably simply. You type in the type of device you want to get rid of, Gazelle asks if what condition it is in and if you have all of the accessories and manuals, and then it makes you an offer to buy the device from you.

I tried it out, and quickly found that my old Palm Z22 will earn me $10. Gazelle will send me a postage-paid box to ship the device to them, and they'll take care of it from there. Personal data will be wiped clean, and the device will be resold on the secondary market, meaning it gets put to use rather than being destroyed. Remember the old mantra of "reduce, reuse, recycle"? Well, they're embracing it all the way.

Gazelle won't buy every device you have sitting around, but even if they won't take it for cash, they will still offer to recycle your devices responsibly.

Individuals aren't the only ones who can take advantage of Gazelle. Businesses, schools and organizations can sell devices in bulk, which can be a good fund-raiser for any local non-profits.

Oh, you can also choose to donate your earnings rather than take cash directly. For my ten bucks, that works just fine.

Top 10 Signs You Don’t Have a Green Job

kbutler — Thu, 24 Apr 2008 13:04:58 -0400

Sure, it is a bad job market out there and some of us are eager for work. But if any of the following sound familiar to you, you might want to reconfigure the resume. Or call Greenpeace to see if they are hiring.

TOP TEN SIGNS YOU DON’T HAVE A GREEN JOB

10. You fall asleep on the job and people in hazmat suits wake you up.

9. Interviewer asks if you can type, get coffee, and resist toxic waste.

8. You’re paid in baby seal pelts.

7. You take a lot of “before” photographs that involved undeveloped land and happy, frolicking wildlife.

6. There’s a sign at the office that reads “EPA Superfund Site.”

5. You discover your boss can cough up tar, and he’s not a smoker.

4. You become convinced that the office plants are glaring at you.

3. Your job description includes the letters “FEMA.”

2. You’re required to screen all visitors for hidden cameras and 20/20's John Quinones.

1. At the end of the day, you glow.

Who Makes the Greenest Electronics?

jplatt — Thu, 06 Mar 2008 15:18:33 -0500

The Sony Ericsson T650i mobile phone is one of the greenest cell phones on the market, according to a new report from Greenpeace. The venerable environmental organization studied 37 devices (cell phones, laptops and desktop PCs) from 14 brands, judging them on energy efficiency, recyclability and avoidance of toxic manufacturing substances.

Also ranking high were the Sony Vaio TZ11 notebook and the Sony Ericsson P1i PDA. None of the desktop PCs reviewed received good grades.

While even Greenpeace itself admits that this study is not comprehensive enough to be used as a buying guide for all products, they are using the study to show that while electronics makers have come a long way toward getting greener, they still have a lot further to go. They also want to encourage consumers to think green when buying electronics, and to buy the most environmentally responsible products available.

An earlier report from Greenpeace discussed the rising tide of "e-waste" from electronics, and showed how much of it is dumped in the developing world, where toxic chemicals will impact generations yet to come.