Dell's Chemical Use Policy
The following article is re-printed from the Dell web site.Copyright 1999-2006 Dell Inc.
Dell's vision is to avoid the use of substances in its products that could seriously harm the environment or human health and to ensure that we act responsibly and with caution.
To act responsibly , Dell believes that if reasonable scientific grounds indicate a substance (or group of substances) could pose significant environmental or human health risks, even if the full extent of harm has not yet been definitively established, precautionary measures should be taken to avoid use of the substance(s) in products unless there is convincing evidence that the risks are small and are outweighed by the benefits. Dell considers these to be "substances of concern."
Dell identifies substances of concern with consideration for legal requirements, international treaties and conventions, specific market demands, and by the following criteria:
- Substances with hazardous properties that are a known threat to human health or the environment;
- Substances with hazardous properties that show strong indications of significant risks to human health or the environment;
- Substances with hazardous properties that are known to biopersist and bioaccumulate in humans or the environment.
To enforce the company's precautionary measures , Dell strives to eliminate substances of concern in its products by:
- Maintaining a Banned and Restricted Substance Program,
- Choosing designs and materials that avoid the use of substances of concern,
- Prohibiting supplier use of these substances contractually, and
- Substitution of viable alternate substances.
If alternatives are not yet viable, Dell works with its industry partners to promote industry standards and the development of reliable, environmentally sound, and economically scalable technical solutions.
To demonstrate our commitment , Dell is striving to eliminate all remaining uses of brominated flame retardants by 2015, ahead of the OSPAR (Convention for the Protection of the Marine Environment of the N.E. Atlantic) Commission's goal. PVC is on Dell's banned and restricted materials list and we are in the process of phasing out PVC chassis parts. We will review a phase out plan yearly or when required and evaluate available technical, environmental and scalable solutions. Dell is open to discuss these plans and is committed to continuously improve the environmental quality of our products.
For more detailed information regarding Dell's Chemical Use Policy please visit their web site.