Apple iPhones Contain Toxins


Hazardous chemicals found in the Apple iPhone are not only toxic to the environment, they can also "interfere with sexual development in mammals", scientists at Greenpeace say.

In the latest of a series of reports chastising Apple for its apparent disregard for the environment, the ardent environmental campaigner said its own tests of the iPhone uncovered hazardous substances which had already been eliminated by other mobile phone manufacturers.

The report prompted the US National Centre for Environmental Health to announce it intended to file a lawsuit against Apple for breaking Californian law, which requires products containing certain chemicals to carry a warning label.

Greenpeace found the iPhone contained toxic brominated compounds and hazardous PVC plastics, but noted the device appeared to comply with safety regulations, which prohibit the use of lead, cadmium, mercury and chromium.

One of the authors of the report, Greenpeace Research Laboratories senior scientist Dr David Santillo, said: "Two of the phthalate plasticisers found at high levels in the headphone cable are classified in Europe as 'toxic to reproduction, category 2' because of their long-recognised ability to interfere with sexual development in mammals."

It is not clear whether the same plasticisers are found in other Apple products, such as the iPod. The iPhone is not due to launch in Australia until next year but many Australians have imported the device from the US and hacked it to work on local mobile networks.

While not prohibited for mobile phones, phthalates are banned from use in toys and childcare products across the European Union.

But reports from scientists suggest Greenpeace may have exaggerated by implying the iPhone could be a health risk to humans.

An information sheet on the Phthalate Information Centre website, produced by the American Chemistry Council, said studies found that high doses of some phthalates, when administered to pregnant rodents shortly before they gave birth, "suppressed levels of testosterone, a male hormone key to sexual development in the male fetuses, and interfered with the development of male reproductive organs".

But it also noted a newer study conducted by the Society of Toxicology found similar tests conducted on monkeys had no negative effects on the development of the male reproductive tract.

"The research [on monkeys] indicates that the reproductive effects observed in rodents may not be relevant to humans," the information sheet reads.

Earlier this year, Steve Jobs published a public letter on the Apple website rejecting Greenpeace's claims that Apple was not taking the environmental effects of its products seriously enough.

He outlined steps Apple had already taken to remove toxic chemicals from its products - such as eliminating lead-filled CRT monitors - and said Apple expected to stop using PVC and brominated flame retardants (BFRs) in its products by the end of 2008.

Greenpeace said Apple had made little progress toward meeting that goal, as the iPhone contained both PVC and BFRs. It questioned whether the iPhone models slated to launch in other countries would see the chemicals eliminated.

"Steve Jobs has missed the call on making the iPhone his first step towards greening Apple's products," said Greenpeace toxics campaigner Zeina Alhajj.

"It seems that Apple is far from leading the way for a green electronics industry as competitors, like Nokia, already sell mobile phones free of PVC."

Greenpeace has published a slideshow and YouTube video showing how the iPhone was disassembled, while the full report can be found here.

Apple declined to comment on the Greenpeace report.

Sphere: Related Content

No comments: