Computers and other IT equipment have been blamed for causing as much global warming as the airline industry. …IT equipment is thought to generate 35m tonnes of harmful CO2 gas each year.

According to the BBC, Manchester City council are leading projects led to decrease the harmful effect of computers on the environment. The proposals include the centralization of PC power, by which home users would use an energy efficient desktop box and connect to ‘data centers’ in order to perform PC functions. The idea is that if everyone goes for these instead, IT equipment will cost the environment considerably less in resources for production and energy expenditure.

I’m sure there is some public interest in this kind of service, but apparently it might not be as affordable as it is practical.

The taskforce will oversee the piloting of a “green PC” service in which individual machines use 98% less energy than standard PCs.
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PC functions, such as Microsoft Office, internet browsing and e-mail, are hosted in a network of “green” data centres rather than on individual PCs and delivered to users through a broadband connection.

The data centres will use concentrated energy efficiency measures such as non-fossil fuel power and will remove the need for an energy-hungry PC in each household.
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It is claimed the PCs will use 75% fewer resources in production than standard PCs and last three times as long.
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Piloting of the new green PC service is projected to start in early 2008.

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This entry was posted on June 10th, 2007 at 20:27 (GMT) and is filed under Emissions Reductions . You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.