With the launch of the iPhone 13, Apple has doubled down on its focus of reducing carbon emissions through its manufacturing and delivery processes. Here are all the ways the iPhone 13 is more environmentally friendly than other devices.
About the iPhone 13’s Life Cycle Carbon Emission
According to its Product Environmental Report, carbon emissions for the US-manufactured iPhone 13’s life cycle come from 81% production,16% use, 2% transport, and 1% end of life processing.
With the bulk of these carbon emissions happening on the side of the manufacturer, it’s no wonder that Apple is primarily working towards improving the production, end of life processing, and transport processes to reduce its environmental impact.
If you wonder how Apple plans to pull this off, here are all the ways the iPhone 13 the most environmentally iPhone so far.
1. Recycled Rare Earth Materials
Through a joint effort between its disassembly robots, Apple can now more effectively split apart its iPhones into distinct components, which include rare materials.
With this, the US-manufactured iPhone 13 uses 100% recycled rare earth elements in all its magnets, which consist of 98% of the total rare elements in the whole device. In addition, its Taptic Engine uses 100% recycled and 99% recycled tungsten.
While Apple didn’t disclose the total percentage of recycled tin, it does use 100% recycled tin in the main logic board and battery management unit. This is also the first iPhone to use 100% recycled gold in its main logic board plating.
2. Reduced Toxic Materials
While Apple didn’t completely remove all the toxic materials from its manufacturing process, the iPhone 13 does have arsenic-free display glass. With US configurations, the iPhone 13 is also mercury-free, brominated-flame-retardant-free, PVC-free, and beryllium-free.
To learn more about the materials inside your iPhone, you can check Apple’s 2021 Regulated Substances Specification. Aside from internal policies, Apple derives its restrictions from international laws, regulatory agencies, and eco-label requirements.
3. Renewable Energy Sources
In an effort to reduce its carbon footprint, Apple launched its Supplier Clean Energy Program in 2015. With the Supplier Clean Energy Program, Apple works with its suppliers to transition its entire manufacturing supply chain to 100% renewable energy. This includes manufacturing processes like material extraction, component manufacturing, and product assembly.
After several years, this move seems to be reaping big rewards. With the iPhone 13, Apple primarily uses low-carbon sources of electricity like hydroelectricity in its aluminum smelting.
4. Energy Efficiency
Using 54% less energy than the US Department of Energy requirements for its battery charger systems, the iPhone 13 Pro Max is one of the most energy-efficient iPhones ever produced.
Through a combination of software and power-efficient components, the iPhone 13 is capable of managing power consumption a lot more effectively than its predecessors. With this, it’s likely that iPhone 13 owners will use less fossil-fuel-powered electricity during the phone’s entire lifespan compared to older models.
5. Recycled Packaging
As well as from reduced packaging size, Apple claims to use materials from recycled and responsible sources. With the iPhone 13 models, 95% of its packaging is fiber based.
While not limited to this list, Apple follows the following Sustainable Fiber Specifications when defining its sustainable fibers:
Virgin wood fibers Virgin non-wood fibers (like bamboo) Fibers derived from waste products (ex. sugarcane) Fibers from post-industrial or post-consumer recycled sources
Aside from this, the fibers used also need to be certified under sustainable management or sourcing programs such as the Programme for the Endorsement of the Forest Certification (PEFC), Forest Stewardship Council (FSC), and so on.
When it comes to non-wood fibers from waste products of cultivated plants, Apple requires that the material comes from renewable biomass. In addition, Apple also requires that it does not result in the destruction of critical ecosystems or high conservation value habitats.
6. Recycled and Reduced Plastic
For the iPhone 13, Apple still relies on fossil fuel-based plastics. However, it does use upcycled plastic in its antenna and 35% or more recycled plastic in a dozen of its other components. In addition, instead of wrapping the entire box in plastic, the iPhone 13 uses a sticker strip that secures the box instead.
7. Efficient Sizing
By removing the charging brick and making tweaks to its design, the overall packaging of the iPhone 13 is significantly smaller than many of its predecessors. With this, Apple can maximize the number of iPhone 13 devices in every full delivery truck. However, it’s important to understand that just because this is a possibility, that doesn’t mean that all deliveries will be at max capacity.
8. Increased Durability
While the iPhone is not popular for its durability, the iPhone 13 features a Ceramic Shield screen and IP68 water, dirt, and dust resistance rating. Unlike many of its predecessors, this means that the iPhone 13 models can withstand being submerged to 1.5 meters underwater for up to 30 minutes.
Additionally, Apple added the Ceramic Shield coating to its various models since the iPhone 12. However, while this promises up to four times better drop resistance for the front glass, the back glass is still vulnerable.
The Problem With Offsetting Environmental Impacts
It’s important to understand that despite all these changes, there are still more options that consumers need in order to truly call Apple an environmentally friendly company.
For example, Apple needs to address the consumer need for repair-friendly hardware designs, forced obsolescence from software, reliance on toxic metals, contracts with recycling partners to destroy possibly salvageable components, and so on.
Lastly, in its report, Apple assumes a three- or four-year period for power of use by first owners based on historical customer data. With this in mind, iPhone users should expect that their devices perform optimally only for that period.
Are Apple’s iPhone 13 Practices Enough?
In the future, it’s likely that Apple will stick to its roadmap for improved sustainability through its production processes. While benevolent, the goal of carbon-neutral initiatives through manufacturing will change and carbon offsetting does not remove the problem of conspicuous consumption.
At the end of the day, nothing is more environmentally friendly than keeping an iPhone for as long as possible. Unfortunately, that doesn’t currently sound like an option for Apple’s bottom-line.
