On Tuesday the California Environmental Protection Agency said that Apple has agreed to pay $450,000 to settle allegations of hazardous waste violations in their Cupertino and Sunnyvale facilities.
In Cupertino, Apple reportedly operated an e-waste shredding facility between 2011 and 2012 without informing regulators. In addition, the company mishandled metal dust from the facility. The complex took in 1.1 million pounds of waste before being closed in January 2013.
The Sunnyvale complex has allegedly processed 800,000 pounds of waste before regulators were notified of its existence. On top of these allegations, the company is accused of taking toxic dust swept off the floor to a site lacking the authority to handle it.
Regulators also said that Apple failed to report and track its waste exports, in addition to failing to mark used oil containers as hazardous.
This incident deeply conflicts with the public image that Apple portrays, which depicts a very environmentally responsible company. The company has touted their work in removing toxic chemicals from their device manufacturing process and their work to use renewable energy to power their offices and data centers.
[via The Mercury News]
