San Francisco city officials are moving to block purchases of Mac desktops and laptops, by all municipal agencies, after the company removed a green electronics certification from its products, reports "The Wall Street Journal" (http://macte.ch/Vc1Nt).

Officials with the San Francisco Department of Environment told the "Journal" that they would send out letters over the next two weeks,informing all 50 of the city’s agencies that Apple laptops and desktops "will no longer qualify"for purchase with city funds. The move comes after Apple removed its laptops and notebooks from a voluntary registry of green electronics, called EPEAT. The standard, created jointly by manufacturers, including Apple, government agencies, and activist groups, requires that electronics products be designed for ease in recycling and higher energy efficiency, notes the "Journal."

EPEAT CEO Robert Frisbee said an Apple representative requested that the company's already-cleared products be taken down from the registry which carries a list of electronic devices certified to be recyclable, energy efficient and environmentally friendly.

In order to meet the standards, recyclers need to be able to easily disassemble products, with common tools, to separate toxic components, like batteries, notes "CIO Journal." The standards were created jointly by manufacturers, including Apple, advocacy groups and government agencies. Frisbee says an Apple staff member told him at the end of June that the company no longer wanted Apple computers to be listed as EPEAT certified.

According to "engadget" (http://macte.ch/ehMCZ), Apple's decision means that many federal agencies might not be able to buy its products, since 95% of its electronics purchasing must conform to the EPEAT standard. What's more, many educational institutions that require the certification would also need to opt out of Mac purchases, as well as large corporations like HSBC and Ford, the article adds.