Apple campaign touts progress on reducing environmental impact

Under Chief Executive Tim Cook, Apple has become increasingly vocal about its efforts to reduce the company's effect on the environment.

The company launched a revamped website that highlights its progress and discloses some new efforts as well. The new site, which includes a solemn video narrated by Cook, coincides with Earth Day (which has already started in some parts of the world) and announces Apple's lofty goal: "We want to leave the world better than we found it."

"Better," says Cook in the video. "It's a powerful word. And a powerful idea. It makes us look at the world and want more than anything to change it for the better."

Though Apple has previously made disclosures about its environmental impact, the new site dramatically expands the scope and detail in terms of efforts to reduce harmful materials in its products and progress toward using only renewable energy at its facilities.

Just recently, Apple was praised by Greenpeace for reducing its reliance on so-called "conflict materials" that come from areas subject to human rights abuses. The environmental group also recently lauded Apple for having among the most environmentally friendly data centers in the tech industry. Indeed, according to the new website, Apple's data centers now run on 100% renewable energy. And across all Apple facilities, the company uses 94% renewable energy, up from 35% in 2010.