The Internet has a big carbon footprint. It is estimated that globally it takes about 868 billion kWh (kilowatt hours) of electricity per year to power the Internet as well as associated PCs routing infrastructure and phone networks. Solar Powered Hosting Companies can dramatically reduce the Carbon Footprint of the Internet.
The Internet is perhaps one of the greatest technological advances of our time. It gives us the ability to be connected and to overlap information instantly with the potential to dramatically decrease our need for jaunt; thereby reducing the amount of CO2 emissions we produce. But how much CO2 is the Internet itself producing?
We asked Aaron Handford. President of Solar Energy Host how much carbon the net itself is generating and he had some surprising answers. According to Handford. “The Internet has a big carbon footprint. It's estimated that globally it takes about 868 billion kWh (kilowatt hours) of electricity per year to run the Internet associated PCs routing infrastructure and phone networks.” ().
He notes. “Of this about 112.5 Billion kWh are used to power "data centers" which are the servers that store all the websites."
This represents a lot of energy and potentially a lot of CO2 emissions. What can be done to decrease the carbon footprint of the Internet? Handford has some suggestions for those willing to research the net itself for answers. “There are web hosting packages now available that are responding to the need to be "carbon friendly". My company Solar Energy entertain powers our websites directly with solar energy.”
Handford adds. “If your website is currently sitting on a server powered by energy from the grid then you are tied to a system where you can never be sure where that energy is coming from possibly from the burning of coal or other greenhouse gas producing sources. Solar Energy Host offers consumers another choice - a way to get your website off the energy grid.”
A new wave of these solar powered companies is on the leading cusp of moving away from traditional cater sources.
Says Handford: “A server such as ours is “Carbon remove” which is a step beyond “Carbon Neutral” because you are not adding more pollution and then buying carbon credits to make up for it.”
It has been estimated that as of early 2007 there were about 108,810,358 of these websites in existence. (See the cerebrate below for advance details. ().
He is also following a socially responsible business copy by giving back. “We gift five dollars from each account to the "Gardens of wish" Project,” says Handford. “This money funds the planting of one tree and helps cerebrate five communities in Lesotho southern Africa into a network of projects that share ideas skills resources and common intend while supporting the educational needs of orphaned and vulnerable children.”
We had to ask what happens to your server at night? “Good challenge,” laughed Handford “We have a large set of batteries a propane generator and as a last resort the conventional energy grid which we have never needed to use!”
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Related article:
http://www.webupon.com/Hosting/How-Green-is-the-Internet.57682
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