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The carbon footprint of the internet

Ever wondered or considered the carbon footprint of your use of the internet?  Here is an idea.  You will need to scroll down.  The first part of the article gives numbers of how many people have access to the internet depending on the country, etc.

Well, here it is… When we think of carbon emissions, we think of the consumption of fossil fuels in things like transportation and industrial processes. Do we ever think of the internet? Contributing to only 3.7% of the world’s global carbon emissions, it’s not considered a major threat to the welfare of our planet, but with how much the internet is growing, we should remain aware of its effects.

Below are some statistics about the effects our persistent use of the internet is having on the environment.

• One email releases 4 grams of CO2 into the atmosphere. An email with a large attachment could have a footprint of up to 50 grams.
• A year of incoming mail for a typical business creates around 135kg of CO2.
• Of the 3.7% global emissions coming from the internet, 3.5% is from the information communications and technology industry
• Data centres across the world are consuming around 1% of global electricity
• Netflix accounted for 300 million tonnes of carbon dioxide globally in 2018
• An online Google search emits 0.2 grams of CO2