The environmental demands impose restrictions on the presence
and use of heavy metals, brominated and chlorinated flame
retardants, CFCs (freons) and chlorinated solvents, among other
things. The product must be prepared for recycling and the
manufacturer is obliged to have an environmental policy which must
be adhered to in each country where the company implements its
operational policy.
The energy requirements include a demand that the computer and/or
display, after a certain period of inactivity, shall reduce its power con-
sumption to a lower level in one or more stages. The length of time to
reactivate the computer shall be reasonable for the user.
Labelled products must meet strict environmental demands, for
example, in respect of the reduction of electric and magnetic fields,
physical and visual ergonomics and good usability.
Below you will find a brief summary of the environmental
requirements met by this product. The complete environmental
criteria document may be ordered from:
Current information regarding TCO'99 approved and labelled
products may also be obtained via the Internet, using the address:
Environmental requirements
Flame retardants
Flame retardants are present in printed circuit boards, cables, wires,
casings and housings. Their purpose is to prevent, or at least to delay
the spread of fire. Up to 30% of the plastic in a computer casing can
consist of flame retardant substances. Most flame retardants contain
bromine or chloride, and those flame retardants are chemically
related to another group of environmental toxins, PCBs. Both the
flame retardants containing bromine or chloride and the PCBs are
suspected of giving rise to severe health effects, including
reproductive damage in fish-eating birds and mammals, due to the
bio-accumulative* processes. Flame retardants have been found in
human blood and researchers fear that disturbances in foetus
development may occur.
00Cover_all.p65
TCO Development
SE-114 94 Stockholm, Sweden
Fax: +46 8 782 92 07
http://www.tco-info.com/
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31.10.2000, 16:56 Uhr