A recent discovery from Apple’s Environmental Responsibility Report revealed that Apple, which recently stated that one of its goals was to make its iPhones and computers out of recycled materials, has ordered recyclers to shred iPhones and MacBooks upon receiving them.
This stands in contrast to an environmentally friendly action that could be undertaken, which would be to salvage everything possible from the devices.
After sorting, the materials are sold and used for production stock in new products.
“Materials are manually and mechanically disassembled and shredded into commodity-sized fractions of metals, plastics, and glass,” John Yeider, Apple’s recycling program manager, wrote under a heading called “Takeback Program Report” in a 2013 report to Michigan Department of Environmental Quality. “All hard drives are shredded in confetti-sized pieces. The pieces are then sorted into commodities grade materials. After sorting, the materials are sold and used for production stock in new products. No reuse. No parts harvesting. No resale.”
Something to think about the next time you’re hunting for a spare iPhone or MacBook Pro component and wonder why it seems harder to find than it should be.
Stay tuned for additional details as they become available.
Via TechEye and Motherboard