Apple Hopes to Make All New Products From Recycled Material
Two days before Earth Day 2017, Apple has pledged to end its reliance on mining and make future products from only renewable resources or recycled material. The lofty commitment comes in the company’s annual Environmental Responsibility Report, which covers 2016.
Apple Park
According to the report, the “ambitious goal” could take “many years,” and require collaboration among various stakeholders., including multiple Apple teams, suppliers, and specialty recyclers.
Those partnerships have already begun:
Traditional supply chains are linear. Materials are mined, manufactured as products, and often end up in landfills after use. Then the process starts over and more materials are extracted from the earth for new products. We believe our goal should be a closed-loop supply chain, where products are built using only renewable resources or recycled material.
As highlighted on its updated website, Apple’s commitment to the environment continued unabated in the last year. Today, 100 percent of the energy used at Apple power centers comes from energy sources like solar, hydro, and wind power. For all of Apple’s facilities worldwide, that number stands at 96 percent.
By 2020, Apple hopes 100 percent of its suppliers are using 100 percent renewable energy. In doing so, the company’s committed to helping vendors bring 4 gigawatts of renewable power online.
Other findings:
- Ninety-nine (99) percent of product packaging for Apple products already comes from recycled material. The goal is 100 percent.
- Apple Park, the company’s new campus, will eventually feature 80 percent of open space and 9,000 drought-tolerant trees. The campus uses 100 percent renewable energy.
- Manufacturing makes up 77 percent of Apple’s carbon footprint. Most of this is due to carbon emissions from the electricity used to make products.
For more on where Apple stands on the environment, see the 2017 Environmental Responsibility Report.
