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EPEAT (Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tool) was established by the Green Electronics Council out of Portland, Oregon. A critical component of the program to reduce e-waste, the EPEAT registry contains environmental information on thousands of products across 23 attributes. EPEAT measures the reduction of lead, cadmium and mercury and lowered as well as the elimination of chromium. Ratings also the amount and type of packaging used for each product in an effort to cover the full product life cycle.

With the EPEAT expansion, consumers can now search more than 40 countries for compliant products. Heavy hitters like Apple, Dell, Sony and Hewlett Packard participate in the program, and the U.S. government throws in its support where it counts by requiring all government RFPs to include only EPEAT rated electronics. It is hoped other governments will follow suit–providing more good news for environmentalists around the world.

The new global standard will help consumers and the tech industry alike, providing reliable information to to recycle responsibly. Based on the EPEAT findings, product compliance is rated as gold, silver or bronze. Today EPEAT covers monitors, desktop computers and laptops with televisions and printers on the way.

For learn how to recycle your electronics, try Recycle Your Appliances & Electronics in the hhgregg Learning Center.