Two years ago, Apple announced its Watch Series 9 as its first carbon-neutral product. The company stated that the manufacturing, use, and disposal of the new model did not contribute to global warming from cradle to grave. Now, a German court has ruled that Apple must recant this claim.
Each aluminum Apple Watch Series 9 and Series 10, the two models with the carbon-neutral designation, generates just over 8 kilograms of carbon emissions. Apple offsets those emissions through the purchase of carbon credits.
The German environmental group Deutsche Umwelthilfe (DUH) brought the lawsuit against Apple. Apple did not immediately reply to a request for comment.
A panel of German judges focused on the nature of those credits, which stem from the planting of eucalyptus trees in Paraguay. Three-quarters of the project area falls on leased land, and the leases end in 2029. The court said the short timeline undermined the company’s carbon-neutral claims and runs afoul of German competition law.
Consumers might reasonably expect that forests used in carbon offset projects today would remain standing in 2050 and beyond, especially since the Paris Agreement calls for a cessation of carbon emissions in the latter half of the century. The court chairwoman stated that consumers would therefore assume CO2 compensation is secured for the advertised Apple Watch until about 2050.
Without longer-term leases, it is possible that the plantations would be cut down, which would undermine the carbon neutrality of any credits sold against them.