The latest iPhones have lower carbon intensity of the aluminum than the previous models.
Speaking at GreenBiz’s VERGE conference shortly after the September iPhone event, Lisa Jackson, head of sustainability at Apple and former administrator of the US Environmental Protection Agency, said Apple’s lowered the carbon intensity of the aluminum used in the new iPhone 8 and iPhone X models to help cut down on waste and preserve the environment.
“We strongly believe that if what we do matters, it should show up in our products,” Jackson said, adding that the new iPhones were created with the environment in mind.
“We set about focusing on the carbon intensity of aluminum,” by cutting down on waste, increasing renewable energy and using hydro-powered smelting, she added.
A video of Jackson’s talk was published in October, but GreenBiz featured it yesterday.
Specifically, they’ve managed to lower the carbon intensity of the iPhone 8 aluminum by 11% versus the iPhone 7 series and 83 percent versus the iPhone 6 series.
Jackson explained:
That was a combination of really cutting down on any waste aluminum and reusing aluminum in the melt for the phone, as well as hydro-powered smelting, which is a big part of aluminum’s carbon footprint.
So the aluminum in the iPhone 8 models is 11% less greenhouse gas emissions per gram than the iPhone 7 series and 83 percent less than the iPhone 6 models.
The company also made product packaging even smaller and required that some of its packaging suppliers commit to source 100 percent renewable power.
As a result of smaller box designs, the carbon footprint for iPhone 8 and iPhone X packaging has been cut down by more than 50 percent from the iPhone 7 series.
Apple previously promised future products will be made from 100% recycled materials.