JAKARTA - Apple has long been known as a company that pays great attention to environmental initiatives, allocates time, money, and efforts to achieve ambitious sustainability goals. However, although the company claims to have worked hard to mitigate environmental impacts, there are many questions about whether these measures are really effective or just imaging.
One of the steps that is currently reaping controversy is Apple's efforts to achieve its carbon neutrality goal by relying on planting eucalyptus trees in Brazil.
In 2020, Apple launched "Apple 2030," a major initiative to become 100% carbon neutral by 2030. Although the company has reached its carbon neutrality status at the global level in the company's operations, Apple is now focusing on realizing carbon neutrality in all aspects of its business, manufacturing supply chain, and the life cycle of their products. However, there are major challenges behind this ambition, particularly related to the annual release cycle and the push to keep up with the rapidly growing development of artificial intelligence (AI).
For a long time, large companies have used carbon credit systems to offset the carbon footprint they generate. Carbon credits result from projects that avoid or reduce carbon emissions in the atmosphere, such as forest conservation or investment in renewable energy.
However, many doubt the effectiveness of this system, arguing that calculating how much carbon is completely absorbed or avoided by these projects is very difficult to do. This is why carbon credit systems are often considered as imaging tactics or "greenwashing" by many parties.
Apple itself turned to planting eucalyptus trees in Brazil as a solution to reduce their carbon footprint. Eucalyptus, which is a fast-growing tree and has the ability to absorb carbon dioxide through its lignin, is considered an effective solution. However, eucalyptus planting in Brazil, which was previously a natural habitat for tropical forests, caused controversy.
Giselda Durigan, an ecologist from the State Research Institute of Srypto Paulo, strongly criticized this strategy. He argues that the cultivation of eucalyptus outside its natural habitat, which does not grow naturally in Brazil or South America, is at risk of damaging local ecosystem balance.
Eucalyptus is known as a plant that is fast-growing and easy to breed, but this trait can actually be a problem. The eucalyptus tree is very greedy for water, and the introduction of this plant into an existing ecosystem has the potential to cause further environmental damage.
In addition, planting large amounts of eucalyptus can lead to monoculture, namely planting one excessive type of plant in a large area. Monoculture can exacerbate ecosystem damage, because it reduces biodiversity which is important for environmental health as a whole. The diversity of plant species in an ecosystem is the key to maintaining the stability and resilience of the ecosystem.
Criticism of Apple's efforts is getting stronger with the argument that eucalyptus planting is not a long-term solution to address climate change issues. While eucalyptus can absorb carbon dioxide, its influence on the entire ecosystem and environmental sustainability is uncertain. History has shown that human efforts to manipulate the environment to meet industrial needs often lead to unwanted consequences.
Apple itself has not provided further explanation of the effectiveness and sustainability of this eucalyptus planting project. Meanwhile, experts and environmental activists continue to warn that solutions to climate change cannot solely depend on one type of plant or project designed to give an environmentally friendly impression.
Overall, although Apple's intention to become a more environmentally friendly company should be appreciated, the use of eucalyptus as a solution to achieve carbon neutrality by 2030 actually raises more questions than answers. The balance between industrial needs and environmental sustainability seems to be still a big challenge for big companies like Apple
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