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AMAZON.COM (NASDAQ:AMZN) now provides EPEAT ‘green electronics’ ratings to help consumers choose environmentally preferable products. This major step into the consumer facing market by the highly successful EPEAT environmental rating system follows several years of continual expansion in the global B2B electronics market.
Portland, OR (PRWEB) January 20, 2010 — EPEAT®, the green electronics rating system (www.epeat.net), today announced that online retailer Amazon.com (NASDAQ: AMZN) now provides its customers with EPEAT ratings information to enable them to select more environmentally friendly electronic products. More than 800 greener IT products are tagged with EPEAT information on the Amazon site – a number that will increase as the portfolio of EPEAT registered products and product types grows.
“This is an exciting step forward in providing consumers with credible information about the environmental performance of electronic products,” said Jeff Omelchuck, EPEAT’s Executive Director. “As a third party rating based on a uniform standard, EPEAT allows consumers to compare different products’ environmental attributes without relying on manufacturer claims alone. And as the world’s largest online retailer, Amazon can provide this information to a mind-boggling number of business and individual consumers at the point of purchase.”
The EPEAT system evaluates electronic products according to three tiers of environmental performance — Bronze, Silver and Gold — based on a total of 51 environmental criteria (www.epeat.net/Criteria.aspx). Key benchmarks include elimination of toxic materials, design for recycling, extended product longevity, increased energy efficiency, and availability of takeback and recycling services.
To find EPEAT products at amazon.com, go to the Electronics Department and scroll down to the Green listings on the left bar – click on EPEAT Gold, Silver or Bronze to find products registered at each of the ratings levels.
EPEAT’s appearance on Amazon.com comes on the heels of remarkable growth over the course of 2009. In the past year the EPEAT system expanded to 41 additional countries worldwide (www.epeat.net/International.aspx). Thin Client devices and Workstations were added to the covered product categories and development work began on new standards for Televisions and Imaging Equipment (printers, faxes, copiers). EPEAT now includes over 40 manufacturer participants of all sizes registering more than 1000 environmentally preferable products around the world (www.epeat.net/Companies.aspx) .
increasing consumer interest in EPEAT and growing uptake in the retail market follows the system’s striking success in the B2B arena since launch in 2006. EPEAT is a purchasing requirement for all US Federal Agencies, and is integrated into hundreds of government, education, health care and enterprise IT contracts worldwide. In addition EPEAT is becoming an integral part of the IT channel, with leading distributors and resellers joining EPEAT Partner programs to support their green purchasing initiatives.
Key purchaser profiles, the participating manufacturer list, EPEAT criteria and environmental benefits may be found at www.epeat.net .
About EPEAT: EPEAT evaluates computer desktops, laptops, and monitors based on 51 environmental criteria developed through an extensive stakeholder consensus process supported by US EPA. EPEAT is based on the ANSI approved IEEE 1680 standard. All EPEAT registered products must meet 23 mandatory environmental criteria. An additional 28 optional criteria are used to determine whether products earn EPEAT Bronze (required-only), Silver (required + 50% optional), or Gold (required plus 75% optional) recognition. The EPEAT system is managed by the Green Electronics Council, a nonprofit organization headquartered in Portland, OR.
Compared to traditional computer equipment, all EPEAT-registered products have reduced levels of cadmium, lead, and mercury to better protect human health and the environment. They are more energy efficient, which reduces emissions of climate changing greenhouse gases. They are also easier to upgrade and recycle. For more on EPEAT criteria and qualified products, see www.epeat.net. (news.yahoo.com/20012010)