- Court upholds DUH’s lawsuit over allegedly CO2-neutral smartwatches
- Commercially used and unsuitable for ensuring CO2 neutrality
- DUH Federal Director Jürgen Resch: “Large corporations like Apple must not deceive consumers on climate protection, but must provide accurate information about the climate impacts of their products.”
The German Environmental Aid (DUH) achieved another major victory today in the case of product greenwashing: The Frankfurt am Main Regional Court has granted the DUH’s injunction against Apple Distribution International Ltd. (case no. 3-06 O 8/24).
The case
The technology company advertises three of its smartwatch models as “CO2-neutral products” and claims that the CO2 emissions generated during the production of the watches are offset by “nature-based” offsetting projects. Apple has long remained unclear about these projects.
However, in the course of the legal proceedings, which have been ongoing since 2024, the DUH’s suspicions have been confirmed: To offset its remaining CO2 emissions, the company relies on eucalyptus monocultures in Paraguay, for which leases expire as early as 2029 and subsequent use is not guaranteed.
A neutral CO2 emissions balance cannot be achieved in this way. The court has now ruled that the advertising is untenable due to the short project duration. The buffer accounts mentioned by Apple, which are intended to compensate for the loss of leased land after the contract expires, are also unsuitable to ensure sufficient security for the capture of the stored emissions, according to the district court.
Statement by Deutsche Umwelthilfe
DUH Federal Director Jürgen Resch: “Apple falsely creates the impression that its Apple Watches, advertised as carbon-neutral, have a balanced carbon footprint. This promise deceives consumers because it is based on a carbon-indulgence trade with an ineffective offsetting project. The alleged CO2 storage in the commercial eucalyptus plantations is limited to only a few years, the contractual safeguards for the future are insufficient, and the ecological integrity of the monoculture areas is not guaranteed. With our climate lawsuits against greenwashing by industrial and commercial companies, we are ensuring that even multi-billion dollar corporations like Apple must provide consumers with honest and comprehensible information about the actual environmental impacts of their products.”
Remo Klinger, representing the DUH in the proceedings, said: ” The court shared the DUH’s view and ruled accordingly: Apple may no longer advertise its smartwatches with the claim ‘The Apple Watch is our first CO2-neutral product.’ The leases for 75 percent of the project area are only secured until 2029. The technology company was unable to prove in court that all leases have been extended. Consequently, the project’s continued existence is not guaranteed, and Apple’s advertising claim is simply misleading. The court also does not recognize the corrective measure of the so-called Verra buffer account, which is intended to offset the uncertainties of possible lease extensions, as sufficient.”
Eucalyptus monocultures are not natural forests. They are maintained through the regular use of pesticides such as the bee killer fipronil. The fast-growing trees consume enormous amounts of water and are highly flammable during droughts, which further calls into question the long-term carbon storage potential of such projects.
Source: fnp.de
Feature photo source: Inside Telecom
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