Apple agrees to pay $450K to settle charges of mishandling e-waste in California

Apple has agreed to pay $450,000 to settle claims it improperly dealt with e-waste at facilities in Cupertino and Sunnyvale, the California Environmental Protection Agency said on Tuesday.

In Cupertino, Apple allegedly operated an e-waste shredding facility between 2011 and 2012 without informing regulators, also mishandling metal dust from the facility, Reuters reported. The complex took in 1.1 million pounds of waste before being closed in Jan. 2013.

The Sunnyvale complex is said to have processed 800,000 pounds of waste before regulators were told it existed. On top of this, the company is accused of taking toxic dust swept off the floor to a site lacking the authority to handle it.

Apple further failed to report and track waste exports, regulators said, or mark used oil containers as hazardous.

The incidents conflict with the public image Apple has crafted for itself, which depict it as one of the most environmentally responsible companies in the world. Its electronics have been stripped of many dangerous chemicals, and the company has worked aggressively to use renewable energy at as many of its stores and offices as possible.

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24 Comments

MacPro

said about 7 years ago

sog35 said:

HYPOCRACY

This is what pisses me off about Tim Cook's Apple. Getting involved in all these dumb ass social crusades and then get caught with crap like this. Apple is better off being more neutral in these issues.

Cook and his social crusades of gay rights, green, privacy, and diversity is dumb. And is only hurting and DISTRACTING the company. Too much energy is being wasted on these issues. While at the same time Apple and Cook is doing hypocritical things:

1. Cook preaches gay rights and diversity. Yet he goes full bore in praising China and making it the big market. Yet China persecutes gays and minorities.

2. Cook preaches Green, yet we have this fine. Plus all the horrible mining operations that supply Apple's devices

3. Cook preaches privacy, yet he makes Google the default search on iOS

Bottom line is Cook needs to dial down his preachy social issue platform or resign from Apple. He can run a charity organization and be fully committed to its cause.

Apple is BIG BUSINESS. They can't be a champion of social change. They should not be. It puts the company in too many compromising situations.

Will you please take your anti Tim Cook comments and shove them.

SpamSandwich

said about 7 years ago

I really, really doubt it was Apple that was running this e-waste facility. More than likely they subcontracted this activity.

coolfactor

said about 7 years ago

SpamSandwich said:

I really, really doubt it was Apple that was running this e-waste facility. More than likely they subcontracted this activity.

Yah, this was 3 years ago, and was obviously a big oversight on their part. Apple was responsible at the end of the day, and this was clearly a big learning opportunity for them. Several irresponsible actions that conflict with their very-public statements of caring for the environment. I'm glad that they were fined. It would be nice for them to share more information on their recycling processes beyond Liam, their dissassembly robot.

apple jockey

said about 7 years ago

Sog35, You are in a bubble of your own making.

Apple has every reason to stand on the correct side of the countless ethical, environmental and social ills that confront humanity.

are you so shallow, you haven't heard that equality is the goal of a more perfect union, or company, society or marriage?

As for the environment, have you not heard, Sog, we have a big problem with climate change? You may not care, but Apple as an institution, most of Apples employees, many of its customers, many of the nationals of its home nation, the nations and treaties upon which it is regulated and .... most marginally enlightened people throughout the world understand and expect that companies and governments must lead the way and will be held to that standard. As well it should be! A lot more people would be bitching, I assure you, if the held the opposite opinion about the worlds ills.

Come out of your cave.

Also, realize Tim Cook is a good man, represents Apple in an exemplary manner as an administrator, front man and lead strategist. He has served as a role model, going forward for countless Executives, both corporate and Government.

is he perfect, no. Only those in the rarefied world of s...5 are so prescient.

gatorguy

said about 7 years ago

SpamSandwich said:

I really, really doubt it was Apple that was running this e-waste facility. More than likely they subcontracted this activity.

Apple's response would at least imply that they were running the operations and not a 3rd party.
Apple: "This matter involves an oversight in filing paperwork to close one of our recycling facilities as part of our expansion to a larger site," Apple spokeswoman Alisha Johnson told Reuters in an emailed statement.
"We've worked closely with [the Department of Toxic Substance Control] to ensure that going forward we have the proper permits for our current site. As we do with all our facilities, we followed our stringent set of health and safety standards, which go well beyond legal requirements."