More than 300 Computer Products Certified with Green Standard

GreenBiz

PORTLAND, Ore., Dec. 19, 2006 - Rapidly growing interest in environmentally friendly "green" computers has resulted in more than 300 computers being registered with EPEAT, the green computer standard released in July. Nine manufacturers currently participate in the program.

According to Jeff Omelchuck, EPEAT's Executive Director, "Buying green computer equipment is no longer just a desirable thing to do. Many organizations now require it." As a result, the number of EPEAT registered products and participating manufacturers is expected to continue to grow.

Compared to traditional computer equipment, all EPEAT-registered computers have reduced levels of cadmium, lead, and mercury to better protect human health and the environment. They are more energy efficient, which reduces emissions of climate changing greenhouse gases. They are also easier to upgrade and recycle. In fact, manufacturers must offer safe recycling options for EPEAT registered products.

EPEAT products are identified as EPEAT-Bronze, EPEAT-Silver, or EPEAT-Gold depending on the number of environmental features incorporated in the product.

A list of all EPEAT registered products and additional details is available online at www.epeat.net.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, using conservative assumptions, estimates that over the next five years, purchases of EPEAT registered computers will result in reductions of:

# More than 13 million pounds of Hazardous Waste

# More than 3 million pounds of Non-hazardous Waste

# More than 600,000 MWh of Energy - enough to power 6 million homes

The Electronic Products Environmental Assessment Tool (EPEAT) is an easy-to-use tool to rank computer desktops, laptops and monitors based on their environmental attributes. The three-tiered EPEAT rating system includes 23 required criteria and 28 optional criteria. The optional criteria are used to determine if the equipment receives EPEAT Bronze, Silver, or Gold recognition. Visit www.epeat.net for additional information.