Google search not environmentally friendly

Derrick

ლ(ಠ_ಠ )ლ
Joined
Nov 22, 2010
Messages
5,085
Reaction score
5
Google, the world’s fastest search engine, is taking a bit of flak from environmentalists as a study reveals that two Google searches from a desktop produces the same amount of CO2 as boiling the kettle.
According to the DailyMail, “A typical [Google] search produces about 7grams of CO2 compared with 15grams for a kettle.”

Google’s aim to produce extremely accurate, fast results accounts for the higher CO2 footprint.
The US company has more than 450,000 servers based around the world to process the demand of more than 200 million inquiries every day.

Each enquiry is sent to a batch of servers based around the globe who will then compete to produce the result fastest. The fact that these servers are often a fair distance from each means they burn up more energy according to Alex Wissner-Gross, a Harvard physicist.

According to research firm Gartner, IT use around the world now causes about two per cent of global CO2 emissions.

The Dailymail reports that the carbon footprint from computer use now exceeds that of the aviation industry.
 
Top
Sign up to the MyBroadband newsletter
X