Apple Refuses to Be Included in Green Ranking Scheme

UK's first-ever green ranking scheme for mobile phones is not something Apple would rather be a part of, following the successful launch of its iPhone 4 across multiple territories worldwide.

An Apple spokeswoman reportedly declined to comment on why the company has decided not to join the campaign, but did point out to the company’s environment-centric area of the Apple.com web site.

Greenpeace lauded the Mac maker for its "Green my Apple" campaign, and praised the company’s CEO back in 2007 for his decision to phase out brominated flame retardants and PVC from Apple products, The Register reports.

However, the environmental group believes the company should be more transparent.

"Transparency is always an issue for consumer electronics companies, who claim that providing too much information gives away competitive advantage,” said Gary Cook, IT sector analyst for Greenpeace International.

“But consumers also deserve to know the full story,” Cook added.

“While Apple has recently made important strides in eliminating toxic chemicals from its products and the reporting of their environmental footprint, it still lags behind others in transparency," the Greenpeace analyst believes.

 Ronan Dunne, O2′s UK chief executive, chimes in with a similar theory:

“Consumers are becoming increasingly aware of the social and environmental impact of the technology they buy and we believe this kind of product transparency will help empower them to make greener choices,” said Dunne.

However, on its “Apple and the Environment” web site, Apple comprehensively reports environmental impact focusing solely on its products.

Apple tracks what happens when it designs these products, what happens when the products are being manufactured, and what happens when the user takes them home and uses them.

Perhaps Apple believes this is enough to conclude whether Apple products are green and, if so, just how green.

In other words, by refusing UK’s green ranking scheme for mobile phones, the Cupertino, California-based electronics vendor is saying “we’ve got your green apple right here” (PDF download).