In the personal computing world HP (Hewlett-Packard) have had one of the best recycling programs. Now, six months ahead of schedule HP has recycled its one billionth pound. HP CEO Mark Hurd says that HP have “reached the tipping point where the price and performance of IT are no longer compromised by being green, but are now enhanced by it.”

All this means that companies that have invested in recycling are now making a profit by recycling products at the end of the products life. It’s great that HP can lead the way in recycling and say to its competitors that they actually make money from it while it attracts new customers.

But we are sad to see that HP still rank far down in the Green Electronics Guide from Greenpeace.

HP – A free-faller, dropping down for failing to provide clear timelines for eliminating the worst chemicals. It looses points for weak definition of take back policies.

In the Green Electronics Guide HP is only placed on 11th place (of 14 places). According to Greenpeace HP “fails to provide timelines for the complete elimination of toxic polyvinyl chloride (PVC) and all brominated flame retardants (BFRs) and therefore loses points”.