UK businesses wanting to buy green IT equipment and reduce the environmental impact of their technology can now use a system created in the US and adapted for the UK market.

The US-based Green Electronics Council is making its Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tool (Epeat) – which identifies green high-performance PCs and monitors – available to UK companies.

The Epeat system uses a number of environmental standards, including the European Union’s Waste and Electronic Equipment (Weee) and Restriction of Hazardous Substances (Rohs) directives to determine if products meet green criteria.

The points-based system uses 51 ratings, 23 of which are mandatory.

The council has formed a partnership with Computacenter, which will modify Epeat’s online Electronics Environmental Benefits Calculator for use by UK organisations.

‘The Green Electronics Council is a small, not-for-profit organisation. By teaming up with Computacenter we can spread green buying of IT equipment in Europe through the large purchasing power it and its clients have,’ said Epeat spokesman Scot Case.

There is a growing incentive for manufacturers to go green as customers demand less environmentally-destructive products. Some of the biggest global firms are leading the way – banking giant HSBC last month revealed its ambitious green IT strategy.