Apple's plan for climate-friendly watches: Clean energy in factories

Apple on Tuesday said that three of its Apple Watch models will come in what it calls carbon-neutral versions sporting a new green logo on their boxes.

Apple aims to be carbon neutral by 2030, including its supply chain. The biggest single reduction in the emissions from the new watches came from using clean electricity to manufacture them. Apple on Tuesday said that 300 of its suppliers have now committed to using clean energy for Apple production.

But another emissions source was Apple's speedy transportation network, which relies heavily on planes. More watches will now move by boat to reduce emissions.

Apple was a pioneer in using planes to haul consumer electronics from factories in China to destinations around the world, helping reduce the inventory it needs to hold and boosting its profits.

For the three new watches, half of shipments by weight, from factory to destinations such as regional distribution hubs, will happen over boats, trains or other non-air methods that burn less fuel and create fewer carbon emissions that warm the planet, Apple executives said in an interview at Apple's Cupertino, California, headquarters.

The three green-tagged versions of the Apple Watch Series 9, Apple Watch SE and Apple Watch Ultra 2 will have lower emissions than Apple's baseline estimations based on previous products, and Apple will buy carbon offsets for remaining emissions, said Lisa Jackson, the head of the company's environmental and governance efforts.

"We could in theory do that (buy offsets) tomorrow, and everything would be carbon neutral, but we wanted to be really clear that we're taking action on everything we know how to do to reduce (emissions) with existing technology," Jackson said.

The company has said previously that a Series 8 watch created 33 kg (73 lb) of carbon emissions, from raw materials to delivery to end customers.

The new climate-friendlier aluminum Series 9 with a sport loop band will have 8.1 kg (18 lb) of emissions remaining after Apple's changes, and the company will cover that remainder by buying carbon credits. That compares with 29 kg (64 lb) of emissions for the standard stainless steel version of the Series 9 with the same band.

• Apple event 2023: iPhone 15 Pro unveiled with advanced 48-MP camera, titanium case