EPEAT spreads its wings, goes international

The Green Electronics Council has created an international version of Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tool (EPEAT) that will now enable manufacturers to list their products in 40 countries worldwide.

With the expanded focus, EPEAT can now be used by IT purchasers in the United States, Canada, Europe, China, Japan, Taiwan, Australia, New Zealand, Brazil and Mexico. There are more than 1,000 products and 30 different manufacturers represented on the directory.

The tool was originally started as a resource for the federal government, which is required to procure EPEAT-registered technology, but it is increasingly being used by businesses to compare and contrast the environmental credentials of desktops, monitors, notebooks and integrated systems. There are three different levels of certification: Bronze, Silver or Gold. There are 23 different criteria that must be met for the entry level, focused on everything from energy efficiency to the toxicity of component materials to packaging and lifecycle management concerns. There are 51 different criteria considered altogether.