Skip to main content
Climate
Search

Main navigation

  • Climate 101
    • What We Know
    • What Can Be Done
    • Climate Primer
  • Explore
    • Explainers
    • Ask MIT Climate
    • Podcast
    • For Educators
  • MIT Action
    • News
    • Events
    • Resources
  • Search
MIT
Close

Main navigation

  • Climate 101
    • What We Know
    • What Can Be Done
    • Climate Primer
  • Explore
    • Explainers
    • Ask MIT Climate
    • Podcast
    • For Educators
  • MIT Action
    • News
    • Events
    • Resources
  • Search
PostNovember 8, 2017

Climate and The Internet: Does Your Click Kill?

Being small in our daily routine, we may not think that our personal use of digital devices could harm the planet.  What’s the big deal with a few dozen emails, ten web searches, posting a couple of color pictures or streaming a movie or two?

Think again.

While your individual click may not seem like much, it turns out that information and computing technologies (ICT) chew up about 7% of global electricity yearly (see).  And, because devices have been multiplying like mushrooms in a rainforest over the last 10+ years, networks and data centers to transmit and store everything have become massive and widespread.  The “Internet of Things” (IoT) - sensors everywhere - is only accelerating the trends.

Take data centers. In 2015 data centers (and cloud infrastructure) accounted for over 400 Twh globally (see).  That’s 400 Terrawatt hours, more than most countries use annually.  As a result, data centers’ contribution to greenhouse gas emissions (2-3%) was on a par with or above the airline industry.  While experts vary on the likely growth in energy demand from data centers in the coming years, we do know the key factors:

  • Our appetite for devices and their apps;
  • What we do with our devices (e.g., simple emails vs. video streaming);
  • What equipment and controls providers use; and
  • What share of renewables power equipment or are offset.

Each of these four factors deserves its own post and comments on ClimateX (at a later time!)…. and, they’re closely linked. For example, where a provider locates a server farm, makes a big difference in cooling needs and access to clean energy. Some providers put data centers near the Arctic Circle with reduced cooling needs, while others locate them in the US state of Virginia, with significantly less access to renewable energy.  Those choices do matter.

Getting back to your clicks - a recent study at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory estimated 70B kW (that’s Billion) kilowatt hours to run American data centers and cloud infrastructure annually, or 2% of US electricity consumption.  For an average person, that’s about 200 kWh per year, are you ready? ...resulting in 300 pounds of CO2 per year.

What to do?  Click less?  Find out which providers are really going green and support them? 

I’m going to have a closer look at Greenpeace’s recent report Clicking Clean with its analysis of the digital world, with scorecards of individual companies and their apps.  

You?

…let us know with a comment below!

by Dave Damm-Luhr
Topics
Finance & Economics
Energy

Related Posts

PostJune 17, 2025

Closing in on superconducting semiconductors

Plasma Science and Fusion Center
New research demonstrates a superconducting diode circuit that could streamline power delivery in ultra-cold quantum systems.
PostJune 16, 2025

Lack of middleman between Illinois farmers and consumers limits market for ...

MIT Climate
A man laughs while carrying a white and green box that reads "farm fresh vegetables."
PostJune 12, 2025

Podcast episode: Digging into climate-smart dairy with Carolyn Beans

MIT Climate
A composite of two side-by-side images. On the left, a woman with a blue shirt smiles. On the right is the logo of the FarmHouse podcast: a flowerpot and a window, through which we can see a small building and windmill.
PostJune 11, 2025

A vision for transportation resilience in the energy transition

MIT Center for Sustainability Science and Strategy
Rethinking resilience of low-carbon transportation

MIT Climate News in Your Inbox

 
 

MIT Groups Log In

Log In

Footer

  • About
  • Terms & Conditions
  • Privacy Policy
  • Accessibility
  • Contact
MIT Climate Project
MIT
Communicator Award Winner
Communicator Award Winner

 

Cancel