Apple Inc., set to mark the iPhone's 10th anniversary while facing criticism from environmental organizations over its manufacturing and recycle practices, has outpaced the industry in reducing its carbon footprint in recent years even though the rate of that decline has slowed, emissions data compiled by Trucost shows.
An analysis of data provided by Trucost shows Apple has steadily reduced emissions since 2007 and runs at lower carbon emissions than its peers. The data also shows that in recent years Apple's emissions have trended downward on the same trajectory as the device industry more broadly and the U.S. manufacturing chain in general. Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. outpaced its main smartphone competitor in reducing emissions in the past eight years, though Samsung's total emissions started out much higher than Apple's a decade ago.
Trucost in 2007 measured CO2 equivalent, or CO2e, emissions of Samsung at 303 tonnes per $1 million in revenue. That output dropped to 228 tonnes in 2015, a 24.7% reduction over the nine-year period. Apple, meanwhile, emitted about 151 tonnes per $1 million in revenue in 2007, significantly below Samsung. Apple cut that output by about 24.5% to 114 tonnes in 2015. However, after dropping significantly between 2007 and 2008, Apple over the past eight years has slowed its emissions reductions. Trucost measured Apple emissions at 123 tonnes in 2008. Between 2008 and 2015, emissions dropped 7.3%. For the same eight-year period, Samsung saw an 18.8% reduction in emissions, and the industry average dropped 18.4%.
In its environmental report, Apple touted its move toward more renewable sources of energy: In 2016, 96% of the electricity used at its global facilities came from renewable energy and all of its data centers use renewable energy. To further reduce its manufacturing footprint, the company plans to bring 4 gigawatts of renewable power online by 2020. Apple reported a 16.8% reduction in emissions per product between 2011 and 2015 in its latest environmental report, published in April, and a 15% year over year drop in fiscal 2016. Trucost measured Apple's environmental performance using a different metric, calculating a 4.3% reduction per $1 million in revenue from 2011 to 2015 and has yet to report a 2016 analysis. Both studies claimed to account for the entire supply chain and manufacturing of the products and the component parts of the products. Trucost, part of S&P Dow Jones Indices, provides investment-grade carbon and environmental data to investors, companies and governments through the assessment and pricing of sustainability risks. Trucost assesses and prices risks relating to climate change, natural resource constraints and broader environmental, social and governance factors.
Apple also noted in a 2016 report on its iPhone 7 model that it has transitioned to more environmentally friendly materials, producing its phones free of PVC, beryllium and mercury, and using fiber-based materials from sustainable sources in its packaging.
Environmental advocacy group Greenpeace and the repair association Repair.org, which represents those involved in repair of technology, including environmental organizations and the aftermarket, recently called out Apple's environmental record related to device reuse and recycle programs.
A Greenpeace report published in June suggests that Apple and Samsung produce the least repairable products among major tech brands. The group said Apple, Samsung and Microsoft Corp. discourage reuse and repair in their designs and practices, and cites Dell, Fairphone and HP as leaders in reuse and repair design.
Apple maintains trade-in programs at its stores, where devices are either refurbished or recycled. However, critics have argued that much of those traded in devices are scrapped for component materials rather than fixed or reused when possible, negatively impacting Apple's environmental footprint.
A report by Repair.org goes a step further, saying "manufacturers have weakened U.S. green electronics standards by resisting repair criteria." The report noted Apple was awarded a gold rating by the Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tool, or EPEAT, for its iPhone 7 and iPhone 6 product lines, but argued that standards have not kept pace with innovations and are no longer challenging the industry to better product-specific environmental practices, like encouraging reuse and recycling. Managed by the Green Electronic Council, EPEAT provides environmental product ratings. It tracks more than 4,400 products from around 60 manufacturers across 43 countries.
Apple did not respond to a request for comment.
While Trucost data does not specifically measure the impact of phone reuse and repair, those dynamics are implied in the emissions footprint to the degree that the more reuse there is in the market, the lower the manufacturing and supply chain costs and emissions for new products will be, since the companies will need to manufacture fewer devices to meet demand.
Meanwhile, Samsung made the Dow Jones Sustainability World Index, or DJSI World, this year, S&P Dow Jones Indices and RobecoSAM, which focuses on Sustainability Investing, announced Sept. 7. Samsung was a member of DJSI World, DJSI Asia Pacific and DJSI Korea in 2015. Apple was never a member.
DJSI World tracks corporate sustainability based on RobecoSAM's analysis of financially material Environmental, Social, and Governance, or ESG, factors and S&P DJI's index methodology. It represents the top 10% of the largest 2,500 companies in the S&P Global Broad Market Index. S&P Dow Jones Indices is owned by S&P Global Inc., the parent company of S&P Global Market Intelligence.