Dive Brief:
- Lens Technology, a major Apple supplier in China, will rely solely on renewable energy to produce glass for the consumer electronics giant by 2018. Lens Technology is the first Apple supplier to make a clean-energy commitment for its production.
- Wind energy will power Apple production at Lens facilities, saving nearly 450,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide each year, equivalent to the energy use in 380,000 Chinese homes, Apple says.
- Combined with zero-waste-to-landfill compliance at Apple's 14 final assembly plants in China, the move advances the company's efforts to help manufacturers reduce their carbon footprint and waste there, fostering that country's transition to a green economy.
Dive Insight:
“We want to show the world that you can manufacture responsibly and we’re working alongside our suppliers to help them lower their environmental impact in China,” said Lisa Jackson, Apple’s vice president of Environment, Policy and Social Initiatives.
Apple, through its clean energy programs, will join with Chinese suppliers to put in place more than 2 GW of new alternative energy in coming years, avoiding the release of more than 20 million metric tons of greenhouse gas pollution in the country between now and 2020.
Apple has been working to accelerate the use of renewable energy in its supply chain, Utility Dive reports.
The iPhone and MacBook maker says it's powering 100 percent of its Chinese and U.S. operations and more than 93 percent of its worldwide operations with renewable energy. In addition, the U.S. government recently granted Apple's energy division permission to sell excess power, which is derived from the company's solar investments.
