The Internet’s Carbon Footprint By Jenna Roberts DO YOU REMEMBER the video “Gangnam Style”? You might recall the record number of views it got. However, did you know that the energy used to stream the video for those two billion viewers is the same amount of energy an electrical power plant produces in a year? The amount of electricity we use in our lives is dangerously harmful to the environment. This is contributed to in part by our significant online presence. For example, when you send an email with an attachment the same amount of energy is used as leaving a lightbulb on for an hour. According to Greenpeace, this is what happens when you send even a simple email: The email is sent and goes to a local server. The local server transmits it to a national server. The national server then forwards it to a larger, international data center - a huge source of pollution! The data centers are always on and are mostly based in the United States. This is not too good for those of us who live near the data centers because of the pollution created by them. On top of the energy that this process consumes, air conditioners are required at all times to cool the machines down. (Recall the exploding Samsung battery? That was an effect of overheating.) What are tech companies doing to reduce their carbon footprint and negative environmental impact? It varies. Instagram earned an A by Greenpeace (an environmental group that uses a rating system) while Twitter received an F. Many companies are working hard to become more environmentally friendly. How can you contribute to the effort of reducing our carbon footprint? Three things: first of all, try to minimize your
A server room at a data center. One data center can use enough electricity to power 180,000 homes. (Time Magazine)
usage of electronics. If your phone, computer, Apple Watch or iPad doesn’t need to be on, turn it off! If that’s a bit too much for you, then try this compromise: when you are watching the latest cat video on YouTube or the newest episode of The Flash on Netflix, do not use the highest resolution. Thirdly, remember all those emails and group chats no one texts on anymore? Delete them! These are all simple actions you can take.
The Alan B. Slifka Middle School
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According to Time Magazine, Apple’s data centers have found ways to use less energy. For example their data centers now are 100% powered by renewable energy, and is working to increase renewable energy use overall. Google gets 34% of its energy for operations from renewable sources. Smart companies are looking to cite powerhungry data centers near reliable sources of renewable energy.
February, 2017 Volume 7, Issue 3