The launch of the iPhone 4S in Hong Kong created a chaotic scene at the Apple store there, where thousands turned out hours ahead of time to line up for the latest iOS gadget. The temptation of smartphone is so great that amounts of people rush to purchase it. However Ma Danni says she plans to postpone that long-planned purchase.
The reason is that she recently learned that the device, produced by the technology giant Apple Inc, is made from components coming from suppliers suspected of releasing large amounts of pollutants.
For nearly two years, five Chinese environmental organizations have worked together to help make sure electronics companies' supply chains are managed with an eye toward protecting the environment and to encourage consumers to choose "green" products.
Apple, long the target of critics who contend its suppliers are harming the environment and people's health, met with delegates from the five environmental groups on Tuesday. The occasion let the company discuss its commitment to containing pollutants being released by its suppliers.
We appreciate the large step Apple took away from dodging its duty and toward attaching importance to this issue, said Feng Yongfeng, founder of the Beijing-based Green Beagle, one of the five environmental organizations.
Apple refused to disclose specifics about the meeting, only reasserting its commitment to "maintaining the highest standards for social responsibility throughout its supply chain".
The same day, Apple proposed arranging a conference call to discuss the environmentalists' findings.
Inspectors with the environmental organizations visited 22 plants that are believed to be suppliers of Apple and blamed them for releasing heavy metal sludge, toxic gas and large amounts of other pollutants.
The company was not the sole target of the groups. This year, 29 companies responded to the organizations' complaints about pollution in their supply chains, but Apple is the only that is believed to have been persistently evasive.
Meanwhile, Apple and the groups have expressed different opinions about how transparent the company's ic parts supply chain should be.
Several delegates from the environmental groups said Apple intends to carry on that work in accordance with its own plans and at its own pace and does not want to tell outsiders what it is doing.
Apple showed us its marvelous idea of managing its supply chains, Li Li said, but if it doesn't disclose information about its suppliers, and the time and steps that will be taken to put this into effect, how can the public oversee any of this?
Ma Jun, director of the Institute of Public and Environmental Affairs, thinks Apple's consumers won't accept the fact that their faddish gadgets are paid for by poisoning the environment, harming communities and sacrificing employee rights.
This article comes from http://www.hqew.net
Dava shares her knowledges on electronic components technologies, which may help you to get more informations about today's electronic products.You can get more informations on electronic components and other developing technologies on her articles.
No comments:
Post a Comment