Apple Announces Project to Protect California Redwood Forest

[MacRumors]

Apple today announced a new investment in the restoration and sustainable management of California's Gualala River Forest, expanding its global Restore Fund initiative.

The project is conducted in partnership with The Conservation Fund and seeks to protect and manage coastal redwoods in Mendocino County while generating carbon credits that contribute to Apple's climate goals.

The Restore Fund launched in 2021 with Goldman Sachs and Conservation International. It has since grown to include Climate Asset Management and direct investments from Apple in projects across the U.S. and Latin America. Apple suppliers TSMC and Murata also back the fund, which now supports two dozen conservation and regenerative agriculture initiatives spanning six continents.

The Gualala River Forest project is part of Apple's push to reach carbon neutrality across its entire footprint by 2030. The company aims to cut emissions by 75% from 2015 levels and offset the remainder through nature-based carbon removal, targeting 9.6 million metric tons annually. Apple says it has already surpassed 60% of its emissions reduction target.

Apple previously partnered with The Conservation Fund to protect 36,000 acres of forest in Maine and North Carolina and has invested in a temperate rainforest in Washington.

Article Link: Apple Announces Project to Protect California Redwood Forest

 

[Spock]

macOS 27 Redwood confirmed 😀

 

[zahuh]

Please someone educate me, why is this a bad thing in any way?

 

[canonical]

Beautiful timber - have some as shiplap panels in our kitchen. Very difficult to find. Great to hear there is a huge resource of it still available - need some more. Thanks.

 

[BelgianChoklit]

Unveiling Ceramic Dome, shipped using carbon neutral helicopters

 

[csnwbd2251]

Please someone educate me, why is this a bad thing in any way?

When it becomes politicized, then it is bad...otherwise this is great for the land and surrounding communities. Instead of carbon credits, they should consider tax credits for individuals donating to this fund.

 

[TJ82]

Please someone educate me, why is this a bad thing in any way?

It’s a company that consumes tonnes of rare earth minerals every year for profit, greenwashing it all with some half arsed effort to do with trees.

 

[CharlesShaw]

It’s a company that consumes tonnes of rare earth minerals every year for profit

Let's all boycott them until they find a way to give us what we want without using rare earth minerals.

 

[bluecoast]

'And we call it... Liquid Wood'.

 

[turbineseaplane]

Please someone educate me, why is this a bad thing in any way?

Best to make up your own mind.

Search and read a bit on terms like: "are carbon credits a scam?" and/or "greenwashing" and decide where you land on this.

 

[StuBeck]

Please someone educate me, why is this a bad thing in any way?

Its not bad persay, but for a company who tried a green initative a few years ago and failed, its more a stepping stone than a completion. They could do so much more by allowing their devices to be more easily repaired, which they are getting better at, but still have a recent past that is quite negative about consumer repairs.

 

[mihighil]

Carbon credits are such bs. Make your phones more repairable and your computers upgradable. Oh and all the carbon credits in the world wont save you from the cringe fest of that “mother nature” video.

 

[turbineseaplane]

They could do so much more by allowing their devices to be more easily repaired

This 👆

The reason they don't is "money from people upgrading" (lots and lots of it).

Look at all the chops they display with design on things like the Air. There is no way to convince me Apple couldn't make an amazing phone that had a detachable, user upgradeable/swappable battery. It wouldn't even be a visual appearance downgrade given how many people put their phones in cases.

 

[Mac Fly (film)]

People continue to fall for the carbon scam. Protecting forests isn’t a bad idea nevertheless. Apple should invest in Archangel Ancient Tree Archive, they propagate the oldest and biggest giant sequoia and redwood species genetics on Earth by taking new growth samples from the tops of those famed giants specifically. The parent trees, as it were.

Apple should invest in regenerative farms, and a project to turn many regular farms into regenerative farms, those effects are tangible in the real world, and not entries on a politicised spreadsheet. People can literally look down at a cleaner river, observe a dramatic increase of wild animals around the farm, discover greater biology in the soil, more healthy farm animals that require zero injections, and healthier humans who consume them, and far less drought and flooding. The buying of credits is not environmentalism, it’s politics. Imagine regeneratively produced real leather cases, that would be quite special. No need to use oil for faux leather or try to invent new complicated material blends when it's right there.

Alas, the company producing hundreds of millions of products and flying them around the world every year, they’re here to save us by buying credits. You know who else buys those credits? Billionaires like Bill Gates. The kind of guy who's such a philanthropist he manages to get richer every year, funny how that works. I'm sure following his lead is the right path, he is the one after all who moved organic farmers off their land in India to replace them with factory farms and cancer-causing chemical sprays, the very sprays that ruin soil, and in doing so reverse all of the above—the modern environmentalist.

 

[ProbablyDylan]

It’s a company that consumes tonnes of rare earth minerals every year for profit, greenwashing it all with some half arsed effort to do with trees.

Didn't they make a point of increasingly using recycled rare earth elements in their devices?

 

[cyberhippy]

I live in that county and have camped and hiked all over both branches of the Gualala, it's an amazingly beautiful area. There's nothing like hiking in the redwoods.

There was a lot of controversy over local logging, it's all second growth of course but it takes 1000 years to become old-growth again so we'd like to preserve as much as possible for the long term future of the local environment.

Personally I'm very happy that Apple is taking a stake in the future of the area.

 

[!!!]

Please someone educate me, why is this a bad thing in any way?

Because their software is in very bad shape and it seems like they need the money to hire competent people instead of imbeciles like Alan Dye and whoever's messing up the software side.

 

[mrr]

More corporations should follow Apple’s lead. 🌲

 

[tennisproha]

Glad Apple is taking the lead on this. As much as I criticize them for not taking hardware and software feedback, they actually have admirable values that they stand by

 

[jimbobb24]

It’s a company that consumes tonnes of rare earth minerals every year for profit, greenwashing it all with some half arsed effort to do with trees.

What are the rare earth metals doing otherwise? Like everything else they are just dirt until we figure out how to use them then they become a resource. They have no other purpose except the one we have created for them.

 

[jomartz]

Fantastic news! The Redwood forests are among the most striking and beautiful places I have been. Wonderful to preserve for future generations.

 

[Arsenikdote]

What are the rare earth metals doing otherwise? Like everything else they are just dirt until we figure out how to use them then they become a resource. They have no other purpose except the one we have created for them.

While I agree completely that these resources are otherwise just sitting there doing nothing, I do think that is not really the reason why people are upset. What you are missing is how much energy and pollution is used to get those resources out of the earth and in usable condition. I am not sure anyone has a problem with us using rocks, it is typically the methods used that are the issue.
Then there is the impact on humans side of things. While everyone likes to get very upset these days about lithium and cobalt and such resources, most don't acknowledge that humans have been being negatively impacted by resource extraction for over a thousand years. Putting lives in danger to extract resources from the earth is nothing new. Sometimes humans were forced to do it and sometimes they chose to do it. I am not trying it is right/wrong or we should/shouldn't. I am merely pointing out that people acting like "OMG, did you know that..." don't know much of anything about mining.

But the process to get these resources out of the ground have always had a fairly large impact on our environment and the people involved.

 

[bmark]

Carbon credit scam is what Apple pays more attention to these days! No wonder why iOS 26 is such an abomination.

 

[YourBoss]

HAHAHA I love all this hypocrisy so much 🥰

 

[maxoakland]

While I agree completely that these resources are otherwise just sitting there doing nothing, I do think that is not really the reason why people are upset. What you are missing is how much energy and pollution is used to get those resources out of the earth and in usable condition. I am not sure anyone has a problem with us using rocks, it is typically the methods used that are the issue.
Then there is the impact on humans side of things. While everyone likes to get very upset these days about lithium and cobalt and such resources, most don't acknowledge that humans have been being negatively impacted by resource extraction for over a thousand years. Putting lives in danger to extract resources from the earth is nothing new. Sometimes humans were forced to do it and sometimes they chose to do it. I am not trying it is right/wrong or we should/shouldn't. I am merely pointing out that people acting like "OMG, did you know that..." don't know much of anything about mining.

But the process to get these resources out of the ground have always had a fairly large impact on our environment and the people involved.

I’m not really sure what point you’re making. It sounds like you’re trying to imply “we’ve been doing this for thousands of years so it doesn’t matter?”