We’ve Got a Bigger Problem Now: Powering the Internet Isn’t So Green

“Data centres consumed 0.6% of the world’s electricity in 2000, and 1% in 2005. Globally, they are already responsible for more carbon-dioxide emissions per year than Argentina or the Netherlands, according to a recent study by McKinsey, a consultancy, and the Uptime Institute, a think-tank. If today’s trends hold, these emissions will have grown four-fold by 2020, reaching 670m tonnes. By some estimates, the carbon footprint of cloud computing will then be larger than that of aviation.”

http://www.economist.com/opinion/displaystory.cfm?story_id=11412495&CFID=7201199&CFTOKEN=82937133

10 thoughts on “We’ve Got a Bigger Problem Now: Powering the Internet Isn’t So Green

    1. If we all buy our gas from Arco for a week it will bring prices down to where they were in 1997 because it’s the companies, not the futures traders or OPEC, driving up the prices. Their bottom line will be damaged unless they sell gasoline to us at a loss.
      Also, Ted Williams’ head is buried next to Walt Disney in carbonite. PASS IT ON TO ALL YOUR FRIENDS OR YOU WON’T GET LAID TONIGHT.

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  1. and the trade off???
    How many tonnes of carbon is not being created because people really telecommute from home, rather than getting into the commute to do their work.
    So we agree that generating electicity is a factor, there are other portions of that issue that need to be taken in as a part of the overall problem space.

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