Apple asked EPEAT, the electronics standards setting group, to pull its 39 certified desktop computers, monitors and laptops, which included past versions of the MacBook Pro and MacBook Air, off the list of green products late last month, Robert Frisbee, CEO of EPEAT told CIO Journal. EPEAT, created through funding by the federal Environmental Protection Agency and manufacturers, awards products a seal to certify they are recyclable and designed to maximize energy efficiency and minimize environmental harm.

In order to meet the standards, recyclers need to be able to easily disassemble products, with common tools, to separate toxic components, like batteries. The standards were created jointly by manufacturers, including Apple, advocacy groups and government agencies. Frisbee says an Apple staff member told him at the end of June that the company no longer wanted Apple computers to be listed as EPEAT certified.

“They said their design direction was no longer consistent with the EPEAT requirements,” Frisbee said. . . .
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One of Apple’s newest products, the MacBook Pro with a high-resolution “Retina” display, was nearly impossible to fully disassemble, said Kyle Wiens, co-founder of iFixit.com, a website that provides directions for users to repair their own machines. The battery was glued to the case, and the glass display was glued to its back. The product, released just a month ago, had not been submitted for EPEAT certification, according to the organization.

Frisbee said that the structure of that laptop would have made it ineligible for certification. “If the battery is glued to the case it means you can’t recycle the case and you can’t recycle the battery,” Frisbee said.

Apple was putting design first in an effort to make products smaller and have batteries last longer

But Apple is removing all of its products from EPEAT's registry, even older desktops that had once been certified.

Only one week after Apple pulled 39 of its products off the eco-friendly product registry EPEAT, the company has decided to hop back on board.

"We’ve recently heard from many loyal Apple customers who were disappointed to learn that we had removed our products from the EPEAT rating system. I recognize that this was a mistake. Starting today, all eligible Apple products are back on EPEAT," Mansfield wrote.

Apple initially defended its decision by pointing out that it holds its products to environmental standards that aren't even measured by EPEAT, but it seems the general public's reaction to the news was just too much for the company.

Apple's decision to de-list itself from EPEAT came as somewhat of a shock to Apple's customer base, who is used to hearing the company tout its green efforts at every keynote and on its website. And although membership in EPEAT is voluntary, numerous schools and government agencies require the products they buy to meet EPEAT certification. The City of San Francisco became the first major municipality to announce that it would no longer spend city funds on Apple's computers after the EPEAT pull-out, with numerous universities and other local governments indicating that they would begin taking a look at their own policies.