Greenpeace praises Apple for reducing use of conflict minerals
Apple released its annual supplier responsibility report Thursday, drawing praise from Greenpeace for steps the company has taken to reduce use of conflict minerals in its products.
"Apple's increased transparency about its suppliers is becoming a hallmark of Tim Cook's leadership at the company," said Greenpeace Energy Campaigner Tom Dowdall in a statement. "Apple has flexed its muscles in the past to push suppliers to remove hazardous substances from products and provide more renewable energy for data centers, and it is proving the same model can work to reduce the use of conflict minerals."
Apple's report says audits of its supply chain found that the company's suppliers did not use tantalum from areas at war.
Tantalum is a metal used in a wide range of electronics. In recent years, activists have highlighted the fact that in places such as Democratic Republic of Congo, warlords are profiting from sales of such minerals as tantalum.
http://www.latimes.com/business/technology/la-fi-tn-greenpeace-praises-apple-conflict-minerals-20140213,0,4440837.story