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Greenpeace Complains Game Consoles Aren't Green Enough

jasoncart writes "None of the major games consoles are 'green enough', says environmental group Greenpeace in a report released today. Zeina Al-Hajj, Greenpeace's International Toxic Campaign co-ordinator, said: "We were shocked with Nintendo; it was our biggest surprise." The company is described by the group as the least 'green' tech firm."

44 of 450 comments (clear)

  1. Green ?! Jesus, they are not SAFE enough by unity100 · · Score: 4, Funny

    every 1-2 years they put out a console that explodes from some of its parts from some brands. they need to make consoles explosion free before making them green.

    1. Re:Green ?! Jesus, they are not SAFE enough by Justin+Hopewell · · Score: 4, Insightful

      I'm not aware of Nintendo having a problem with exploding consoles. Perhaps you're thinking of the original Xbox power supply that caught on fire and had to be recalled? Generally, Nintendo has built more reliable hardware that can usually take a bit of abuse before conking out in any form. I still have my original NES from the late eighties. All Ol' Bessie needs is a puff of air in the cartridge to get it going.

    2. Re:Green ?! Jesus, they are not SAFE enough by maxume · · Score: 5, Funny

      In any case, you shouldn't be licking your console.

      --
      Nerd rage is the funniest rage.
    3. Re:Green ?! Jesus, they are not SAFE enough by Dancindan84 · · Score: 5, Funny
      Completely botched the opportunity for

      In any case, you shouldn't be licking your Wii. Even if you can.
      --
      "Always forgive your enemies; nothing annoys them so much." - Oscar Wilde
    4. Re:Green ?! Jesus, they are not SAFE enough by AKAImBatman · · Score: 4, Interesting
      Nintendo didn't do anything wrong. This is the same bullshit that Greenpeace pulled with Apple. Because Apple didn't have a "environmental policy" listed on their website (Greenpeace didn't even ask!), Greenpeace automatically dinged them as the worst.

      As it turned out, Apple was the best of the bunch. They were already using the safest materials, used the lowest power, and generally were superior to the competition in the area of environmental consciousness. But since they didn't shout it from the mountaintops, Greenpeace decided to get some free press out of them. Assholes.

      According to TFA, they are now doing the same thing to Nintendo:

      Nintendo came in for the harshest criticism, Greenpeace stating the firm "doesn't have any environmental policies."
      Oh noes! No policy! I'll bet they even went as far as to check Nintendo's website!

      (shock! horror! awe!)

      Nevermind that Nintendo just produced the most energy efficient game console in the history of game consoles. Only handhelds use less power than the Wii.

      As far as I'm concerned, Greenpeace has lost all credibility. They can take their little crusade and shove it for all I care. Progress may be slow when you're doing it on the level, but at least you keep the trust of the public. These publicity stunts only result in lower trust, which translates to lower credibility, which impacts their ability to be a force for change.

      Not to mention all the folks who will no longer donate toward ANY of their efforts. (Hint)

    5. Re:Green ?! Jesus, they are not SAFE enough by AKAImBatman · · Score: 4, Informative

      That's true but then they go and spoil it by requiring the Wii to be left on standby if you want the mail & Mii moving features to work.
      Let's run a few figures here.

      * Assume 20 hours a week of gameplay
      * Assume that all consoles remain plugged into the wall for a year
      * Assume that WiiConnect24 is active on the Wii
      * Assume that the 360 and PS3 are powered down when not playing games. (A stretch due to their secondary functions, but we'll go with it.)
      * I will compute using the average figures given in this article: http://www.hardcoreware.net/reviews/review-356-1.htm
      * (20 * 52) = 1040 hours of playtime per year
      * (52 * 7 * 24) - 1040 = 7696 hours of standby time per year

      Gameplay Power Usage
      Wii: 18.51 kWh
      360: 192.5 kWh
      PS3: 201.3 kWh

      Standby Power Usage
      Wii: 73.88 kWh
      360: 19.24 kWh
      PS3: 14.62 kWh

      Total Power Usage
      Wii: 92.39 kWh
      360: 211.74 kWh
      PS3: 215.92 kWh

      Even with WiiConnect24 operating all the time, the Wii will still use less than half the power used by the 360 and PS3.

      Q.E.D.
  2. Who Cares? by Digital+Vomit · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Honestly, who cares what these people think about gaming consoles. What's next? Reporting on what Hamas or Al Qaeda or some other terrorist organization thinks about the XBox 360?

    --
    Modern copyright is theft of culture from everyone and it retards the progress of the useful arts and sciences.
    1. Re:Who Cares? by garett_spencley · · Score: 5, Insightful

      I agree.

      Greenpeace has every right to whine and bitch and express themselves. But slashdot is giving them a voice every time they chose to whine and bitch about a technology company and that's annoying.

      Free speech is glorious but it doesn't give the individuals the right to be heard.

      But then, it gets us whining and bitching which fuels the community so there's what slashdot gets out of it in a nutshell. I suppose it's a case of don't feed the trolls. It would be a nice fairy tale if, the next time the editors post a story about greenpeace, NOT A SINGLE PERSON COMMENTS.

      Alas, I'm dreaming.

    2. Re:Who Cares? by Nicolay77 · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Only if Greenpeace would speak with truth.

      After the Apple issue, I will no longer listen to these zealots on anything regarding electronic technology.

      Once a liar, always a liar.

      --
      We are Turing O-Machines. The Oracle is out there.
    3. Re:Who Cares? by lattyware · · Score: 5, Insightful

      It's called exaggeration. No, they are not terrorists, but it's annoying when idiots group together in numbers to protest something they don't even understand properly.

      --
      -- Lattyware (www.lattyware.co.uk)
    4. Re:Who Cares? by Penguinisto · · Score: 5, Informative

      How the hell are greenpeace terrorists?

      There have been incidents.

      Also - apparently in spite of --now-- publicly trying to distance themselves from the Sea Shephard, there are credible ties to GP and a ship specifically built to ram and sink whaling ships.

      /P

      --
      Quo usque tandem abutere, Nimbus, patientia nostra?
    5. Re:Who Cares? by Sentry21 · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Terrorism is also the use of fear and intimidation tactics as a form of unconventional or psychological warfare, which I think includes most of Greenpeace's activities pretty well.

      Greenpeace for years has used fearmongering and scare tactics to frighten people into thinking that the world will explode if we don't do whatever they say. They've lied repeatedly to the public to try and make their point, and they've performed (potentially valuable) scientific studies, only to ignore the results when they didn't match up with what they wanted the study to conclude.

      There are a lot of things wrong with how we treat the environment. There are a lot of groups out there that are trying to make things better. Greenpeace is not one of them, and its actions only give a bad name to those people who do honestly and truly care about environmental issues and the life of our planet.

      That's why they're terrorists.

    6. Re:Who Cares? by Redlum_Jak2 · · Score: 4, Informative
      Greenpeace never advocated tree spiking. That was Earth First!

      The APL jade was not piracy. It was exactly the same thing Greenpeace does with whaling boats. They boarded the boat to hang a banner on it to advertise the fact that it was carrying illegally harvested mahogany.

      Greenpeace never advocated arson. That was the Earth Liberation Front.

      I don't care if you don't like Greenpeace. But if the only things you know about them are lies, then the only thing you don't like about Greenpeace are the lies that their enemies spout.

  3. Re:Well yeah by polar+red · · Score: 5, Informative

    errr ... don't laugh. That exists : http://www.hempplastic.com/

    --
    Yes, I'm left. You have a problem with that?
  4. Sigh.. by Rurik · · Score: 4, Informative

    More useless propaganda, and the idiots that fall for it.

    For the last two years, Nintendo has been rated the worst. But, not because that is the truth. They are rated that way because they refuse to disclose their environmental methods. And, by disclose, I mean that Nintendo didn't have that information readily available on their website.

    See this follow-up report from Ars Technica.

    In other words: nothing to see here; move along.

    1. Re:Sigh.. by Tsoat · · Score: 5, Insightful

      'Greenpeace reserves the right to arbitrarily change a company's score if they decide the company did something disagreeable' I tkae this as popularity points so to speak, the companies have to "suck up" to them if they don't want to "lose" points. I find this whole thing utterly ridiculous. Im surprised JT hasn't reared his ugly head.

    2. Re:Sigh.. by samkass · · Score: 5, Informative

      This is the same thing that Greenpeace tried to do to Apple. Despite having one of the best records in the industry, Greenpeace rated them "worst" because they didn't publish enough details or promise to do things in the future. Other companies which were in much worse shape but promised things in the future got better ratings. In other words, Greenpeace appears to value words over actions.

      The Wii uses a small fraction of the electricity of the other two consoles. If all Wii sales had been PS3 or XBox360 sales, the environment would be a lot worse off.

      --
      E pluribus unum
    3. Re:Sigh.. by Red+Flayer · · Score: 4, Insightful

      More useless propaganda, and the idiots that fall for it.
      Nice troll-ish leadin, I'll bite.

      Propaganda is not useless, and this particular propaganda is definitely not useless. Environmental concerns are very real, and bringing attention to them serves a useful purpose. By making consumers aware of environmental concerns with products, consumers may factor them into their purchase decisions. Without information about environmental practices, there is no way for purchasers to compare products along those lines.

      So I ask you, why is it useless for purchasers to have more information when purchasing a product?

      Note that this doesn't mean that Greenpeace doesn't use misleading information, which while not useless is detrimental. But Greenpeace uses publicity campaigns in order to affect the decisions made by consumers... and there is nothing wrong with that. In my opinion, it is a useful counter to the corporate propaganda (advertising/marketing) that runs practically unchecked.

      All that said, one would be wise to take any information from an interested party with a grain of salt. Whether it's Greenpeace, industry organizations, or the producing company itself, critical analysis always helps... but dismissing information out-of-hand is probably the most useless act to take with regards to market choices.
      --
      "Trolls they were, but filled with the evil will of their master: a fell race..." -- J.R.R. Tolkien on Olog-hai
    4. Re:Sigh.. by elrous0 · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Doesn't anyone even pay attention to Greenpeace's bitching anymore? I mean, if you've got someone who tells you every day that the sky is falling, no matter what you do, how long before you just tune them out?

      --
      SJW: Someone who has run out of real oppression, and has to fake it.
    5. Re:Sigh.. by gad_zuki! · · Score: 4, Interesting

      The wii uses 11 watts of power at standby by default because of the WiiConnect24 feature. Nintendo designed it so it it checks in with wifi while 'off' for updates and other tasks. This right here is a good example of bad engineering. Instead of turning this on selectively (or turned on by games that might need it), its on by default and it just eats up power. Its like leaving a new CFL bulb on 24/7. That might not seem like a lot but multiply that by the units sold and you're seeing one of the worst standby machines on the market.

    6. Re:Sigh.. by Blakey+Rat · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Only when they harass me on my way home from work to some some idiotic petition or another. I always just ask if Greenpeace is still opposed to nuclear power, and if they say yes, I keep walking. Haven't had to listen to them yet.

    7. Re:Sigh.. by Otter · · Score: 5, Interesting
      Note that this doesn't mean that Greenpeace doesn't use misleading information, which while not useless is detrimental.

      If I'm understanding correctly, you're berating him and accusing him of trolling because repeated, willful dishonesty isn't "useless" as it gets media attention for Greenpeace?

    8. Re:Sigh.. by Sentry21 · · Score: 5, Informative

      Except that the XBox 360 and PS3 can often use even more than the Wii. If you turn off the Wii's 'connect24' option, it's measured at 1.3 watts, as seen in this article.

      With the PS3, if you leave it on 'remote play' standby, it uses 24 watts. This guy did some interesting measurements. Among the more interesting ones:

      Satellite TV receiver (non DVR), standby or off: 15 watts.
      ReplayTV DVR: 30 watts standby, 34 watts active.
      Christmas tree, sparsely lit: 61 watts.
      HP Compaq 2510p work laptop, idle: 67 watts.

      So if you're really concerned about how much power your Wii uses in standby, make sure you're unplugging your receivers, DVRs, christmas trees, and computers when not using them as well.

      But that's standby? What about when they're on and running? The first article mentioned shows some interesting figures - namely that the 360 averages 185 watts, the PS3 averages 193 watts, their test PC averaged 198 watts, and the Wii averaged... 17 watts?

      So the Wii uses 1.3 watts idle, 9-11 watts on Connect24-idle, and 17 watts while active.

      The PS3 uses as low as 1.9 watts idle, 24 watts in 'remote start' standby, and up to 193 watts while playing a game.

      Sorry Greenpeace - which system is greener?

  5. Power consumption, my friends by hengdi · · Score: 5, Informative

    According to this http://blog.wired.com/games/2007/08/wii-the-greenes.html/, the Wii uses 17 watts of energy, compared to the PS3's 171 watts and the 360 Elite's 194 watts.

    Doesn't this make th Wii the greenest? OK, so it may not be the easiest to recycle, but it's an order of magnitude better on power consumption!

  6. Yeah yeah, no environmental policy. by NeoOokami · · Score: 5, Insightful

    http://www.nintendo.com/corp/faq.jsp#environment Assuming you ignore that. This is a repeat of old news anyways. Their criticisms of Nintendo basically boil down to them not having an answer to everything on their checklist exactly how they like it. Greenpeace means well but they tend to demonstrate a horrifying lack of thought or genuine consideration of anything other than their own agenda.

    1. Re:Yeah yeah, no environmental policy. by maxume · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Using whatever methods you feel like in following your own agenda is not the same thing as meaning well.

      --
      Nerd rage is the funniest rage.
  7. Straight off the website by neochubbz · · Score: 5, Informative
    http://www.nintendo.com/corp/faq.jsp

    What does Nintendo do to help protect the environment?

    Nintendo is very concerned with doing our part to help preserve the environment. We're always researching new products and procedures to make our products and operations as environmental-friendly as possible.

    Some things Nintendo is already doing:

    • In Nintendo of America offices:

    • We recycle the paper we use company-wide.
    • We limit our use of colored paper, since it's not easily recycled.
    • We purchase recycled paper towels, report covers, message pads, and writing pads.
    • We currently recycle more than 70% of the waste that is generated at our headquarters.
    • We actively promote the recycling of aluminum cans, plastic bottles, and glass in our corporate cafeterias.
    • We re-use or recycle over 99% of any returned product that we receive from retailers and customers
    • In our products:

    • We use at least 80% recycled paper in all of our shipping packaging.
    • We don't use Styrofoam in any of our packaging.
    • Many of our instruction manuals are printed on recycled paper.
    • Our clamshell packaging is recyclable and most recycling centers accept it.
    • As is stated in the manuals of the Wii console and DS Lite, neither product contains latex, lead, mercury, cadmium, hexavalent chromium, polybrominated biphenyl (PBB), or polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDE). Additionally, we have been phasing out the use of PVC in our packaging, using a safer, recyclable plastic instead.
    • We take great care to comply with all relevant regulations on avoiding the use of dangerous materials. All Nintendo products supplied worldwide are designed to comply with relevant global standards. In order to certify that Nintendo products comply with standards for hazardous chemical substances, Nintendo has established the Green Procurement Standards, which require our component suppliers to certify that any parts they deliver do not include hazardous chemical substances, and ensure that Nintendo fully controls its products internally.
    --
    Charming man. I wish I had a daughter so I could forbid her to marry one. -Arthur Dent
  8. modern times ... by unity100 · · Score: 4, Funny

    one has to watch his balls even playing console games ...

  9. Just Picking the "hippest" target by MaizeMan · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Face it, this is just like green peace singling out Apple as the computer company they were going to harass about manufacturing methods. They pick the brand best known to their political base and go after it for practices shared by the whole industry because they get a lot more press coverage attacking a "hip" company like Nintendo or Apple, than a boring one like HP or Microsoft.

  10. That's a bit of a fallacy. by SatanicPuppy · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Greenpeace != Terrorist organization

    Still, asking those bastards their opinion about any electronics is pointless. They won't be happy until it runs on fairy dust (harvested from free-range fairies, of course).

    Greenpeace is a great example of one of the environmental organizations that give environmentalism its freaky leftist reputation. The environment is not a left or right issue; we all live here, we all should care.

    But having an organization who honestly believes we should abandon most aspects of our current technological society in order to be more in tune with the planet polarizes the issue, and drives more moderate people away.

    This is a great example, along with all the rest of their consumer electronics whinging lately. That stuff is minor league in terms of global pollution problems, but they know that they have a better chance of getting the boomers to protest apple or microsoft than they do of persuading them to give up their hummers.

    --
    ad logicam Claiming a proposition is false because it was presented as the conclusion of a fallacious argument.
    1. Re:That's a bit of a fallacy. by sm62704 · · Score: 5, Insightful

      That stuff is minor league in terms of global pollution problems

      Indeed. The efects of just transporting games and game consoles dwarfs any negative environmental impact of their manufacture and disposal. Greenpeace should think about how much more it would harm the environment if you had to drive to an arcade to play electronic games like you did in the 1970s.

      Speaking of the seventies, in the 1870s someone actually predicted the huge environmental problems that would be posed by the futuristic society of the 1970s - the continent, he predicted, would be hip deep in horse shit.

      Technology solves far more problems, environmental and otherwise, than it causes.

      --
      mcgrew's razor: Never attribute to stupidity that which can be explained by greedy self-interest
    2. Re:That's a bit of a fallacy. by chill · · Score: 4, Funny

      Speaking of the seventies, in the 1870s someone actually predicted the huge environmental problems that would be posed by the futuristic society of the 1970s - the continent, he predicted, would be hip deep in horse shit.

      Was he making an environmental commentary or political one?

      --
      Learning HOW to think is more important than learning WHAT to think.
    3. Re:That's a bit of a fallacy. by digitrev · · Score: 4, Funny

      Yes.

      --
      Cynical Idealist
  11. What's so hard about re-usable materials? by tjstork · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Look, I'm an old, angry, Republican, and not one of these tree hugging types, but I think Greenpeace has a really good point.

    I mean, check this out. When I was a kid, TV's were put into wooden cabinets. Steel was used for a lot of structural things. Plastic was considered cheap and the knock on Japan was that it was all "cheap plastic stuff".

    Well, fast forward almost 40 years later and what do we find. Plastic stuff is really not all that recyclable, it comes from petroleum, so, when it really boils down to it, plastic actually really does suck as much as the old timers said that it did.

    Why can't they make a video game enclosure or a computer enclosure out of some kind of wood? Or, make controllers out of some kind of steel? Wood is at least renewable and steel is the most recycled thing there is. It just seems to be madness to be making more plastic junk out there when we already have mountains of this stuff.

    --
    This is my sig.
    1. Re:What's so hard about re-usable materials? by oahazmatt · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Or, make controllers out of some kind of steel? If the very first Xbox controller was made out of steel it would be like holding a small Buick in your lap.
      --
      Those who believe the Internet is private,
      find their privates are on the Internet.
  12. Yes, and? by Auckerman · · Score: 5, Insightful

    What do they expect? Industrialized societies destroy their surroundings. From shipping products, to driving to the store to buy it, all the way to the manufacturing process. The best you can honestly hope for these days is that the product doesn't poison your kids and even that isn't a guarantee. To call out "consoles" over, say computers in general, is merely an attempt to ride the media buzz surrounding a market that isn't being hampered in the United States during it's recession.

    To be honest, I could never take these guys seriously anyways. They aren't interested to solutions or working within the economic reality of the planet, they seem to want to end the industrial revolution and have everyone go back to farming. Nuclear power, nope. Working with companies to make an imperfect process better, while letting it remain imperfect, nope can't do that rather continue to yell at them from over here rather than work with them. It's all or none.

    Nature conservancy is an example of a environmental group actually making a real difference. Green peace is a bunch of self important attention whores.

    --

    Burn Hollywood Burn
  13. Re:Actual Report by falcon5768 · · Score: 4, Informative

    Its not a lack of disposal policy, its the fact that they refuse to disclose it to Greenpeace which makes them mad. All three of the systems use BFR and PVC

    --

    "Slashdot, where telling the truth is overrated but lying is insightful."

  14. Re:Can't Follow the Link by Sun.Jedi · · Score: 4, Funny

    Seems theres always at least one guy who think that Greenpeace represents the entire environmental movement. They represent a movement alright.

  15. Re:Well yeah by eln · · Score: 4, Funny

    That's not true, I painted my Wii green so I could get in on this whole "green" trend. I found just the right paint, too. It's whale-oil based paint with some dolphin fin ground in for strength. I found this great paintbrush made with spotted owl feathers to apply the paint, and as a bonus I made a little cozy for my wiimote from giant panda fur.

    I'm going to send some pictures of my new setup to Greenpeace, I hope they'll feature them on their website.

  16. re: Greenpeace means well?? by King_TJ · · Score: 4, Interesting

    I think you give them FAR too much credit with that statement! IMHO, they DON'T "mean well" by any stretch of the imagination! They're on a rampage with a skewed agenda - and it's important for people to see them for what they are, a group of radical environmental extremists.

    If you REALLY want to encourage positive changes in our "environmental footprint" - you need to do it with education and promoting scientific advances. Research in creating lower power-consumption devices, improved battery technology, an HONEST and REASONABLE approach to the subject of "recycling" ... these are all good moves. Harassing businesses and publishing negative reports about their products just makes you lose your credibility.

  17. A word to Greenpeace by moosesocks · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Learn how to choose your battles.

    To me, Greenpeace is almost completely irrelevant as an organization, and have lost pretty much all of their credibility. They oppose everything, and offer very few practical solutions to the world's ills, whilst continuing to decry virtually anything fashionable or popular.

    As a result of their anti-nuclear tactics, construction of new nuclear plants stopped, and a great many coal plants were constructed instead, which had a far more hazardous effect on the environment as a whole. Heck.... wildlife in the areas around Chernobyl are doing quite well thanks to the complete lack of human activity in the area.

    Instead of encouraging us to all drive electric cars, the enviromentalists should have been promoting hybrids as a reasonably practical segue into developing electric cars. Now that hybrids have been proven to be practical and effective, companies are turning their attention to plug-in hybrids and true EVs.

    Instead of demanding full and widespread adoption of wind and solar power, they should have been encouraging experiments with small-scale wind and solar farms, as well as more R&D into those two technologies. Small wind farms have slowly proven to be practical and economical in certain areas, and if NanoSolar can keep true to their word on production costs, we should be seeing solar panels being printed onto every exterior surface imaginable over the next few years.

    The thing is....you can't force a revolution. GreenPeace need to learn that they might actually have a chance of achieving their goals by lightly prodding industry and consumers in the right direction.

    Instead of proclaiming "GAMES, NINTENDO EVIL," perhaps they could instead publish a headline such as "Greenpeace study finds that Nintendo could drastically cut landfill waste by using biodegradable hemp-based plastics for just $0.02USD per unit"

    Perhaps that's a bit of a mouthful, but it's a lot more likely to provoke a response from the public: "Hey, why don't they do that? Sounds awfully selfish of them not to," and a resoponse from the company: "Hey, why don't we do this? It'll help us improve our image, and won't cost much"

    --
    -- If you try to fail and succeed, which have you done? - Uli's moose
  18. Re:well by ramon_omar · · Score: 5, Informative

    i'd worry about phtalates after i was sure my balls wouldnt get chopped off in a console battery explosion. You're doing it wrong. You don't actually have to sit on the console for the game to work.
  19. Greenpeace are scumbags by Quattro+Vezina · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Even the founder of Greenpeace has disowned them, because they go way too far.

    They're a bunch of nutjobs, and only one step away from terrorists.

    --
    I support the Center for Consumer Freedom
  20. Re:well by SwordsmanLuke · · Score: 5, Funny

    ...I am disturbed to my very core that someone felt it necessary to mod this Informative.

    --
    Any plan which depends on a fundamental change in human behavior is doomed from the start.