Singapore has become the 41st country to make the EPEAT (Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tool) electronics rating system available to buyers of electronics products within its national borders.
EPEAT offers a registry of more than 1,000 products and more than 40 participating manufacturers worldwide, according to the organization that oversees the system.
Portland, Ore.-based EPEAT is a not-for-profit organization managed and operated by staff contracted from the Green Electronics Council (GEC). The GEC is part of the International Sustainable Development Foundation, another not-for-profit organization also based in Portland.
EPEAT is primarily overseen by an unpaid board of advisors consisting of environmental advocates, institutional purchasers, manufacturers, government policy staff members, researchers and electronics recyclers.
According to an EPEAAT news release, Singapore has become the first new country to join the system following international expansion last August. With country-specific green product ratings available, EPEAT now offers purchasers in Singapore a way to assess the environmental performance of computer hardware and displays.
“Growing interest in environmental issues and greener products among end users made Singapore a strong candidate for addition to the EPEAT system’s country coverage,” says Jeff Omelchuck, executive director of EPEAT. “We look forward to helping customers and manufacturers use EPEAT to identify the best-in-class green IT (information technology) products available in Singapore.”
Last summer’s expansion enabled IT purchasers in the United States, Canada, Europe, China, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, Brazil and Mexico to compare products based on their environmental performance in those countries. Singapore now joins that roster.
“The EPEAT system offers Toshiba a clear and impartial way to assess and communicate the strength of our environmental design initiatives," says Hidemi Murata, managing director of Toshiba Singapore Pte Ltd., which has registered EPEAT gold-rated products in Singapore.
The EPEAT system evaluates electronic products according to three tiers of environmental performance: Bronze, Silver and Gold, based on 51 environmental criteria, according to the group. Benchmarks include elimination of toxics, design for recycling, extended product longevity, increased energy efficiency, packaging waste reduction and take-back/recycling services.
EPEAT is a purchasing requirement for United States federal agencies, and is integrated into hundreds of government, education, health care and enterprise IT contracts worldwide, says the group.
More information on EPEAT can be found at www.epeat.net.