To attract customers who are increasingly sensitive to the arguments of preserving the environment, it is necessary to show a green paw. Apple therefore commits a step further with a new plan to reduce its global carbon footprint to nothing. " By 2030, every Apple device sold will have zero net climate impactPromises Lisa Jackson, vice president responsible for environmental, political and social initiatives. In April 2018, the Apple company already announced that it was operating entirely with renewable energies in its direct operations, offices and Apple Stores. This time, it is the entire production of devices and their life cycle that is taken into account from mining for the components to the packaging of the finished product for the consumer.
To achieve this new objective, the company is activating several levers: using more low-carbon and recycled materials in its products, innovating in recycling and being more energy-efficient upstream, from product design. Its 2020 Environmental Progress Report details its plans to cut emissions by 75% by 2030 and develop innovative solutions to remove the remaining 25%.
Regularly criticized for the conditions of extraction of the raw materials used to manufacture its products, Apple says it wants to ultimately minimize the use of this step by recycling as much material as possible for the manufacture of new products.
Dave, the new recycling robot
Among the innovations, a new recycler robot - after Daisy launched in 2018 - nicknamed Dave, capable of disassembling the iPhone's Taptic Engine (the motor that provides tactile sensations in the form of vibrations to users) to better recover key materials such as as rare earth magnets, tungsten and steel. Apple will also partner with Carnegie-Mellon University to improve engineering in this area.
Achieving this objective also requires improving the technological processes and materials used to manufacture its products: direct smelting of carbonless aluminum (currently used in the manufacture of the 16-inch MacBook Pro), reduction of fluorinated gases emitted for the production of some electronic components ...
Apple wants to lead its suppliers in the movement. The American company ensures that 70 of its subcontractors are committed to using 100% renewable energy for the production of Apple, for an equivalent of 8 GigaWatts of electricity. If they are reached, “ these commitments will allow the production of the equivalent of Co2 to be removed from more than 3 million cars from the road, ” emphasizes Lisa Jackson. Apple will help them, including a $ 100 million investment to finance projects led by the US-China Green Fund, a private equity fund managed for commercial purposes to promote green energy in China. “ Part of the investment we're making is working with suppliers to convince their own governments to put more clean energy on the grid, ” she continues. For Apple CEO Tim Cook, this new commitment goes even further: " Climate action can be the foundation for a new era of potential for innovation, job creation and sustainable economic growth ."