LONDON: In a startling revelation, scientists have found that the average person generates a staggering 22 tonnes of carbon dioxide (CO2) each year through the data they generate from various sources such as photos, videos, texts, and emails. To put that into perspective, this amount of CO2 is equivalent to flying from London to New York 26 times. This finding sheds light on the environmental impact of our digital activities.
Furthermore, researchers have estimated that photos taken on smartphones alone result in 805,083 tonnes of CO2 emissions per year in the UK. This is comparable to the carbon footprint generated by flying from London to New York a whopping 934,109 times. It is important to note that this immense amount of data is collected and stored by companies in data centers worldwide.
These data centers, which process and store information using strings of ones and zeros known as bytes, are now believed to contribute between 2.5% to 3.7% of all human-induced CO2 emissions. Surprisingly, this exceeds the carbon footprint of the aviation industry, which is responsible for 2.1% of emissions. Despite this significant impact, data centers have largely been overlooked in global decarbonization policies as a hidden source of carbon emissions.
In response to the exponential growth of digital data, academics at Loughborough University in the UK have developed a groundbreaking tool called the Data Carbon Ladder. This innovative tool allows businesses to measure the CO2 output of their digital data, paving the way for more sustainable practices. Professor Ian Hodgkinson of Loughborough Business School highlighted the importance of considering the hidden carbon costs attached to digital technologies amid the push towards achieving net-zero emissions.
Utilizing the Data Carbon Ladder, the researchers estimated that a typical data-driven business employing 100 full-time employees generates approximately 2,203 tonnes of CO2 emissions annually. This is equivalent to flying from London to New York 2,600 times. Such emissions are poised to increase significantly with an estimated 180 zettabytes of stored data—equivalent to 6.8 billion years of continuous Netflix streaming—expected by 2025.
Excitingly, Professor Tom Jackson, also from Loughborough Business School, announced the launch of the world’s first publicly available tool that empowers organizations to assess the environmental impact of their data projects. This tool offers organizations the opportunity to determine the carbon footprint of their data-related activities and explore more sustainable data approaches that reduce emissions. These developments come in light of recent figures from Vodafone, revealing the immense data consumption during events such as the Glastonbury festival.
During the five-day festival, a staggering 169 terabytes of data were consumed, and an additional 450 gigabytes of data were uploaded during Sir Elton John’s headline performance alone. Professor Jackson points out that these events only scratch the surface of the greater impact, as these captivating moments are instantly shared across various social media platforms, amplifying their environmental consequences on a global scale. As a striking example, an average Instagram post by Cristiano Ronaldo reportedly exerts an energy equivalent to powering 10 homes for an entire year.
The findings underscore the urgent need for businesses and individuals to address the carbon footprint of their digital activities. As the world increasingly relies on digital technologies, it is crucial that we adopt sustainable practices to reduce the environmental impact of our data-driven lives. – PA Media/dpa
Credit: The Star : Tech Feed
