Greetings--
Provided below is a front page write up today in "Inside EPA" on the leaked
Sony document.
Inside EPA Weekly Report Vol.21, no.37-September 15, 2000
INDUSTRY GOES ON GLOBAL OFFENSIVE AGAINST ENVIRONMENTALISTS Targeting
funding, internet activities
Several industry sectors have begun efforts to counteract recent gains by
environmentalists on international and trade issues, ranging from
preemptive attempts to block charitable foundations from funding
environmentalists to the use of internet "intelligence" collection agencies
to track and potentially cripple activists efforts on a global scale,
according to industry officials and confidential industry strategy documents.
Environmentalists say the new initiatives constitute an unprecedented
offensive on their ability to engage in the debate over the effect of
international trade, as well as economic and political globalization, on
the environment.
Industry officials by and large defend their efforts, saying that the
measures are legal and necessary in order to keep track of the numerous
campaigns environmentalists have launched in the international arena.
According to documents obtained by Inside EPA, Sony Co. this summer
prepared an "action plan" for counteracting the efforts of several domestic
and international environmental groups--including Friends of the Earth,
Greenpeace and Silicon Valley Toxics Coalition. The plan includes such
activities as "pre-funding intervention" and creates a "detailed monitoring
and contact network" to track the activities of these groups. A copy of
the strategy is available on our online document service, IWP Extra. See
page 2 for details.
Sony presented the document during a July technology sector meeting in
Brussels on the so-called "WEE" directive--a European Union proposal that
would phase out a raft of toxic substances in electronics and would require
manufacturers to take back their products for recycling once their useful
consumer life is over. The WEE initiative has been heavily lobbied by
several U.S. environmental groups, but bitterly opposed by most
multinational electronics firms.
The Sony paper and sources close to the issue say the monitoring network
would employ one of the dozens of new internet "intelligence" agencies
--such as London-based Infonics PLC--that monitor chat rooms, e-mail lists,
electronic bulletin boards, online news services, newsgroups and other
sources of public information for specific data requested by a company or
industry group. This information includes press releases and news stories,
discussions of particular issues and campaigns, and overall strategy, and
is typically compiled in digest form for subscribers to the service.
Although sources with Infonics were not available for comment, the company
has been involved in international environmental issues in the past, most
notably when it hired Royal Dutch Shell, Inc. to polish its corporate image
after the Nigerian military executed a local environmentalist who was
fighting to require Shell to address contamination.
An industry official says "pre-funding intervention" means providing groups
with industry data prior to the beginning of their campaigns to ensure
"they have good information" about company products and practices. But an
observer familiar with industry efforts says it likely refers to a growing
movement in the business community to take industry problems with
activists' agendas directly to donors, charitable foundations and companies
that sponsor the environmental organizations, in an effort to stall the
campaigns before they even commence.
Sources say the Sony paper only highlights what some contend is a growing
movement in the industry to try and cripple environmentalists and other
activists organizations because of their demands on trade issues. Sources
also point to a new website--truthabouttrade.com--that was reportedly set
up by the agribusiness sector in response to last year's protests at the
World Trade Organization (WTO) meeting in Seattle. The organizers of the
site have collected a list of environmental groups that took part in the
protests, their sponsors, and a list of "myths" about trade and environment
and their rebuttals--including charges that that global warming is not a
real phenomenon and that the government should not protect certain species
from extinction due to human activities.
Environmentalists say the site is a clear attempt to intimidate charitable
foundations into not providing the groups with funds. And while the
groups' site stops short of actually calling for the foundations to halt
funding for these groups, it does say "we intend to shine a very bright
light on these groups, and hold them accountable for their actions."
Activists say the efforts could set a dangerous precedent, and warn of an
industry "Big Brother" mentality that seems to be becoming more prevalent
in the business community. One observer says the Sony strategy also
appears to be the first example of a coordinated, international effort by
business to monitor and counteract activists' efforts.
Several sources say that prior to the Seattle demonstrations, much of the
industry did not view environmentalist working on trade issues as a
threat. But after protesters--led in large part by environmental and labor
groups--successfully shut down the WTO meetings and their subsequent wins
in the realm of public opinion, many in the business community have begun
to take notice and are actively seeking a way to address the situation.
++++++++++++
From: "Intl. CRT" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Subject: IPS news on Sony offensive against NGOs
Date: Mon, 18 Sep 2000 19:14:44 -0700
ENVIRONMENT: Electronics Giant Tracks Environmental Organisations
By Danielle Knight
WASHINGTON, Sep 15 (IPS) - One of the world's largest electronics
manufacturer is tracking the detailed activities of environmental
organisations seeking to regulate high-tech industries.
A leaked document written by Sony Corporation, obtained by IPS, outlines a
presentation made in July to fellow electronics companies at a conference
in Brussels illustrating the various activities of environmental groups. It
names specific US activists who seek to regulate waste caused by the
electronics industry.
The presentation describes the various campaigns of Greenpeace, Friends of
the Earth, the European Environment Bureau, the Silicon Valley Toxics
Coalition, and the Northern Alliance for Sustainability. It then suggests
that a counter-strategy by the industry would be discussed at the meeting.
Ted Smith, executive director of the Silicon Valley Toxics Coalition, an
advocacy group based in California's high-tech hub, told IPS he was
startled to discover that the Japanese-based company was discussing his
group's activities.
''It seems that industry has spent an inordinate amount of time fighting
the tide instead of doing what they need to do to clean up the industry,''
he says.
Mark Small, vice president of environment and health and safety issues with
Sony in the United States, acknowledged that Sony was tracking
environmental groups.
''We are obviously concerned about our image and we want to make sure that
if Greenpeace is pushing something we want to be on top of it,'' says
Small, who is based in San Diego, California.
He admits that the presentation was not put together in the ''most
tasteful'' way but explains that it was not meant for public release.
Electronics industries, including 54-year-old Sony, have been fighting
efforts by environmentalists and the European Union which would legally
force manufacturers to be responsible for their products and the
environmental or health damage they could cause.
In Europe these efforts have culminated in what is known as the European
Commission Directive on Waste from Electrical and Electronic Equipment (or
WEEE). The premise of the regulation is that the producer of all electronic
products and electrical equipment must be financially responsible for
managing their products throughout their lifecycle, including when the
product is no longer useful and thrown away.
''The public should not have to pay extra taxes for waste management costs
of hazardous materials that producers choose to use in electrical and
electronic equipment,'' says Smith. > > The directive also includes a
phase-out by 2008 on mercury, lead, cadmium and other toxic chemicals
commonly used in electronics.
Environmentalists in Europe began pushing the legislation as it became an
increasing burden for local governments to deal with the amount of
electronic waste generated by the booming expansion of the computer industry.
In general, computer equipment is a complicated assembly of more than 1,000
materials, many of which are highly toxic, including toxic gases, toxic
metals, biologically active materials, acids, plastics and plastic additives.
Apart from the well-known substances like mercury and lead, the health
impacts of many of these chemicals and the mixtures and material
combinations in the products often are not known, warn environmental groups.
The production of semiconductors, printed circuit boards, disk drives and
monitors involve particularly hazardous chemicals, and workers involved in
chip manufacturing are now beginning to come forward and reporting cancer
clusters, according to the Silicon Valley Toxics Coalition.
The organisation notes that by 2004, there will be an estimated 315 million
obsolete computers in the United States. Since fewer than 10 percent of the
high-tech machines are now recycled, most of them will be destined for
landfills or incinerators, says Smith.
Small with Sony opposes regulations on the high-tech industry and argues
companies are already undertaking voluntary efforts to better design
products so that they cann be more easily recycled.
He says Sony is working with the state of Minnesota and some cities to
develop recycling and ''take-back'' programmes for used electronic
equipment, including stereos and television sets.
While a recent three pilot-study in Minnesota proved that collecting and
recycling old televisions and computers was not currently cost effective,
Small says Sony is willing to meet these costs as it works on manufacturing
products to be more easily recyclable.
Part of the problem, he says, is not the new products, but older stereo
equipment or televisions which contain parts that were never labelled in
anticipation of being recycled.
''If we get this working in the United States we will show Europe and Japan
that this is a working model that makes economic sense and will be more
effective than regulation,'' says Small.
But activists campaigning for tighter controls on the toxics used in the
industry say such voluntary efforts do not address the phase-out of toxic
chemicals or if companies will accept responsibility for their products.
''The rest seems to be window dressing,'' says Smith, with Silicon Valley
Toxics Coalition.
The electronics industry and the US Trade Representative have been actively
campaigning against Europe's effort to adopt health and environmental
safety laws regulating the industry.
Since the European legislation surfaced several years ago, the American
Electronic Association (AEA) - with 3,000 member companies, including IBM,
Microsoft, Motorola, and Intel - and the US Trade Representative launched a
major offensive against the WEEE directive. They charge that the
legislation violates the World Trade Organisation (WTO) because it imposes
requirements on foreign manufacturers.
Environmentalists and three US lawmakers have written to Vice President Al
Gore, urging the presidential hopeful to intervene and put an immediate
stop to the USTR's lobbying.
''We must level environmental standards up, not down,'' says a letter
signed by more than 100 pressure groups. ''Trade Associations must not be
allowed to dictate environmental health policy.''
_______
Visit www.svtc.org to view our site.
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