A study sponsored by the Australian Computer Society has shown that computers and telecommunications equipment in Australia generated 7.94Mt of carbon dioxide in 2005, 1.52% of national emissions. The ACS issued a Policy Statement for Green ICT, which includes suggestions on initiatives ICT professionals, government, consumers and ICT manufacturers can take to help reduce carbon dioxide emissions attributable to the use of ICT equipment. Tom Worthington, chair of the ACS Green IT Group, will talk about practical steps which can be taken.
Audit of Australian ICT Carbon Emissions
The ACS has undertaken an emissions audit on the amount of carbon dioxide being generated by ICT usage by Australian Businesses. The results of the audit indicate that ICT use by Australian Businesses generated 7.94Mt of carbon dioxide in 2005, equivalent to 1.52% of total national carbon dioxide emissions.
See:
- ACS reveals ICT's Carbon Footprint, Media release, 16 August 2007
- Audit of Carbon Emissions resulting from ICT usage by Australian Business, ACS, 16 August 2007
ACS Policy Statement on Green ICT
The ACS recommended:
- Extending the Energy Rating System to ICT equipment for domestic and commercial use
- Innovative technologies to reduce power consumption
- Carbon offsets to help offset the emissions being produced by ICT equipment used in the office
- Virtualisation to replace servers
- Disable screen savers and implement ‘sleep mode’ for inactive equipment.
See:
- Policy Statement on Green ICT, 16 August 2007
ACS Green ICT Group
Professionals discussing Green issues:
The ICT Environmental Sustainability Group ("Green ICT") brings together professionals interested in balancing economic and environmental aspects of information technology and telecommunications. It is a special interest group of the Australian Computer Society. The group aims to hold joint meetings with other professional bodies interested in technology, the environment and sustainability.
More Information
- ACS
- Policy Statement on Green ICT, 16 August 2007
- ACS reveals ICT's Carbon Footprint, Media release, 16 August 2007
- Audit of Carbon Emissions resulting from ICT usage by Australian Business, ACS, 16 August 2007
- ACS Green ICT Group
- Tom Worthington
- This document is available at: http://www.tomw.net.au/technology/it/green_ict/
Slides for these notes are also available.
Copyright © 2007 Tom Worthington
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