make-it-green-cloud-computing-and-its-contribution-to-climate-change

Powering the cloud - how much will it take?

How much electricity or associated greenhouse gas pollution is
currently produced or will be generated to power a much bigger cloud
in 10 years? The answer is far from clear, given the rapid growth, and
that many major cloud brands refuse to disclose their energy footprint.

The Smart 2020 analysis forecast that the global carbon footprint of the
main components of cloud-based computing - data centres and the
telecommunications network - would see their emissions grow, on
average, 7%and 5%respectively each year between 2002-2020.
Underlying this analysis is the number of data centre servers growing
on average 9%each year during this period.

Using the global analysis and forecast of the overall ICT emissions
footprint in the Smart 2020 Report as a foundation, the following
reports seeks to shine a fresh light on the electricity demand of the
global cloud, highlighting the scale of the potential demand and
importance of where and what sources of electricity are being used to
power Facebook, Gmail, and other cloud-based computing platforms.
The first of the two adjustments were made to the analysis used in the
Smart 2020 Report to disaggregate the projections for growth in the
main components of cloud based computing, and place in context of
electricity demand and renewable energy supply. The third adjustment
incorporates some bottom up analysis of energy demand from data
centres in the US, and the scale impact on the size of the overall
electricity demand if more accurate estimation of the energy demand
and GHG emissions associated with large data centres.To make the
data of the report more accessible as an instrument to evaluate the
projected impact of the cloud on electricity demand and their
relationship to energy policies, the Smart 2020 analysis has been de-
aggregated to show overall electricity consumption as outlined below.
[...]
<<

PDF, 1MB
Powering the cloud - how much will it take?

How much electricity or associated greenhouse gas pollution is
currently produced or will be generated to power a much bigger cloud
in 10 years? The answer is far from clear, given the rapid growth, and
that many major cloud brands refuse to disclose their energy footprint.

The Smart 2020 analysis forecast that the global carbon footprint of the
main components of cloud-based computing - data centres and the
telecommunications network - would see their emissions grow, on
average, 7%and 5%respectively each year between 2002-2020.
Underlying this analysis is the number of data centre servers growing
on average 9%each year during this period.

Using the global analysis and forecast of the overall ICT emissions
footprint in the Smart 2020 Report as a foundation, the following
reports seeks to shine a fresh light on the electricity demand of the
global cloud, highlighting the scale of the potential demand and
importance of where and what sources of electricity are being used to
power Facebook, Gmail, and other cloud-based computing platforms.
The first of the two adjustments were made to the analysis used in the
Smart 2020 Report to disaggregate the projections for growth in the
main components of cloud based computing, and place in context of
electricity demand and renewable energy supply. The third adjustment
incorporates some bottom up analysis of energy demand from data
centres in the US, and the scale impact on the size of the overall
electricity demand if more accurate estimation of the energy demand
and GHG emissions associated with large data centres.To make the
data of the report more accessible as an instrument to evaluate the
projected impact of the cloud on electricity demand and their
relationship to energy policies, the Smart 2020 analysis has been de-
aggregated to show overall electricity consumption as outlined below.
[...]
<<

PDF, 1MB
http://www.greenpeace.org/raw/content/international/press/reports/make-it-green-cloud-computing.pdf