Green issues concern us all

On 1 January the EU Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) regulations come into force in the UK, requiring hardware retailers and manufacturers to provide environmentally-friendly disposal facilities for all products sold.

WEEE is clearly a positive step: electronic waste contains all manner of toxic components and the UK alone generated one million tonnes of it last year.

But the Institute of Public Policy Research (IPPR) is right to point out that WEEE will not be enough on its own. It is only the beginning.

While undeniably a valid contribution, focusing on recycling is not a long-term solution because it merely addresses the symptoms of the problem, not the cause.

There is a view that, by forcing manufacturers to take responsibility for the products they sell, recycling commitments will act as an incentive for suppliers to develop the kinds of greener designs that will help tackle environmental problems at source. But it is by no means certain.

The IPPR proposals for government-regulated levies on equipment design and manufacture are sound.

But it would be wrong for the business community to continue to view green issues as a problem for someone else to solve.

The UK is already far behind other EU countries, not only with implementation of the WEEE directive but also in the development of softer mechanisms such as voluntary agreements and education initiatives.

Real progress will come not via the blunt instrument of new regulations, but from changing the prevailing culture, which too often sees green concerns as a nuisance to be addressed only so far as the law requires.

It is incumbent on all businesses to be part of that cultural change, both by taking an active role with regards to their own environmental impact and by putting pressure on suppliers to create less wasteful products.

Green computing is not the responsibility of suppliers alone. Nor even of the government. It is the responsibility of everyone.

What do you think? Email us at: feedback@computing.co.uk