Dell Launches Dell Earth!

On January 9th 2007, Dell launched “Dell Earth (www.dell.com/earth),” a new online site designed to provide a high-level, holistic view of all of Dell's environmental initiatives for our consumers/public.Dell is dedicated to help preserve the environment, and Dell Earth provides up-to-date information on our programs and progress.

Can anyone use this program?
Currently, the program is available to Dell’s U.S. consumers making new computer purchases.It will be available to any U.S. consumer for any brand of computer in February 2007, and will be available to consumers globally by April 2007.

Can a business customer use the program?
Currently, the program is designed for Dell consumers.However, after February 2007, any computer customer can access the site and make a donation.

Why is Dell doing this?
This is Dell’s latest environmental stewardship effort and an important part of our customer experience.We are partnering with our customers to protect the environment.

Who is Dell partnering with to make this happen?
Dell is partnering with the Carbon Fund and Conservation Fund for this effort. Dell will collect donations from participating customers and remit to the partners.Our partners will use these funds to plant trees.

How did you estimate the donation amounts?
The amounts are based on expected average CO2 emissions from the production of electricity needed to power the systems over 3 years. For a notebook, it is .42 tons and for a desktop, it is 1.26 tons.The cost of the carbon offset is $4.75/ton.It costs approximately $6.3/tree planted.On an average, a tree will sequester 1.33 tons of CO2 over 70 years through the program.

Can planting a tree really make a difference?
Yes, over an average 70-year lifespan of a tree, it will trap about 1.3 tons of CO2 from the atmosphere - roughly the emission that would result from a road-trip from Maine to California. This more than offsets the carbon emitted from the production of electricity used to power a computer during its average life span.

What types of trees are planted and where?
The donation funds are used to plant native trees only.These trees are planted across the U.S. in forests that are sustainable including national wildlife refuge.The Conservation Fund also focuses on reforestation efforts in the Lower Mississippi River valley area.When the program is available outside the U.S., planting projects outside of North America will also be identified.