While Dell has received a fair amount of attention for their green work, HP has been taking steps of its own. HP just released the RP5700 desktop PC and achieved the EPEAT’s first Gold rating. EPEAT is a rating system run by the Green Electronics Council that evaluates the environmental impact of computers, notebooks and monitors. Think of it as LEED certification for computers.
So far 12 desktops have achieved Bronze, 70 have Silver and now HP has the only Gold. The Gold standard requires products to meet the minimum requirements and 75% of optional criteria. HP took the biggest initiatives in the areas of "reduction/elimination of environmentally sensitive materials" and "Design for end of life", which includes eliminating use of PVC and other toxic materials and a minimum of 90% recyclability or reusability.
With the government backing the EPEAT, requiring 95% of government electronic purchase to be recognized under this system, hopefully consumers will follow suit and look for computers that are greener. More optimistically, I hope other manufacturers get jealous enough to start making some Gold standard computers themselves.
Via Inhabitat