Dell chairman Michael Dell has announced plans to make all his company's PCs carbon-neutral by planting trees to offset the power used to run the computers.

The vendor is working with The Conservation Fund and Carbonfund.org, both of which are non-profit organisations that plant trees in sustainable managed forests.

Dell also urged other technology companies to take similar steps to protect the environment.

"The customer experience starts with receiving the best value and continues with the knowledge that we are working with our customers to protect the environment throughout the life of their system," said Dell.

"Programmes like Plant a Tree for Me and our global recycling efforts empower our customers to participate with us in making a difference. It is our hope that other companies in our industry will join us to improve the environment that we all share."

Customers will be invited to pay $2 for a notebook and $6 for a desktop to offset the likely power use over a three-year period. The scheme will be started in the US next month and worldwide in April.

"Dell has focused on eliminating toxics from their computers, and has improved this by encouraging others to join schemes," said a Greenpeace spokesperson.

The vendor has also launched a Dell Earth scheme in which customers can track the company's green programmes online.

Dell has also finished a review of its recycling system and will recycle any Dell computer free of charge.