03-03-2010 PC World: Greenpeace Hits Samsung for Delaying Toxic Phase-out

Excerpt from the PC World article;

International environmental group Greenpeace hit out at Samsung on Wednesday for reneging on a promise to remove harmful substances from its electronics products.

At issue is the presence of Brominated Flame Retardants (BFRs) in Samsung gadgets. The toxic chemicals have the potential to damage the environment and harm human health and their elimination has been a major goal of Greenpeace in the electronics sector.

Samsung was one of the first companies to publically voice support for a phase-out, and in 2004 issued a joint-statement with Greenpeace saying it would work to rid them from its products. The pledge earned Samsung points in Greenpeace's Guide to Greener Electronics and by 2006 the company was promising it would end use of BFRs by Jan. 1, 2010.

But that never happened.

In November 2009, less than two months before the self-imposed deadline, Samsung e-mailed Greenpeace to say that it wouldn't be able to deliver on the commitment, according to the group.

A delay wasn't unique to Samsung. Dell, Lenovo and LG Electronics had pledged to rid their products of polyvinyl chloride (PVC) and BFRs by the end of 2009 but have delayed this until 2011 or beyond, according to Greenpeace.

What's different with Samsung is that the notification came less than two months before the self-imposed deadline.