Facebook Sets the Benchmark on Carbon Footprints
A company's carbon foot print is an important part of their branding.
Facebook has revealed the carbon footprint and energy use of its US
data centers and has pledged to use 25 percent sustainable energy by
2015. Facebook currently gets 23 percent of its energy from clean and
sustainable sources, 27 percent coal, 17 percent natural gas and 13
percent nuclear.
It means the
total amount of greenhouse gas produces by a person, company, event,
product or organization. The carbon footprint can be measured by
undertaking a GHG emissions assessment. Once the size of a carbon
footprint is known, a strategy can be devised to reduce it, e.g. by
energy saving, technological developments, better process and product
management.
Facebook has revealed the carbon footprint and energy use of its US
data centers and has pledged to use 25 percent sustainable energy by
2015. Facebook currently gets 23 percent of its energy from clean and
sustainable sources, 27 percent coal, 17 percent natural gas and 13
percent nuclear.
Facebook has
two US data centers, located in Oregon and North Carolina, as well as
two co-location facilities, one on the East coast and one on the West.
"We’re
releasing this data because we believe in the power of openness, and
because we hope that adding another data point to our collective
understanding of our industry’s environmental impact will help us all
keep improving," the company said in a statement.
Facebook said that last year, its data centers and operations used 532 million kilowatt
hours of energy, emitting 285,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide
equivalent. In contrast to Google whose carbon footprint equaled nearly
1.5 million metric tons, more than five times Facebook's.Google has been
to the forefront of some very major renewable deals itself.
hours of energy, emitting 285,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide
equivalent. In contrast to Google whose carbon footprint equaled nearly
1.5 million metric tons, more than five times Facebook's.Google has been
to the forefront of some very major renewable deals itself.
For a typical
Facebook user, a year's worth of liking and posting consumes just 269
grams of carbon equivalent — "roughly the same carbon footprint as one
medium latte," the company pointed out. "Or three large bananas. Or a
couple of glasses of wine."
“Unfortunately,
the transparency Facebook exhibited today is still rare among companies
who are racing to build our on line world.” said Gary Cook, a
Greenpeace International analyst.
"Facebook looks
forward to a day when our primary energy sources are renewable, and we
are working with Greenpeace and others to help bring that day close,"
said Marcy Scott Lynn, one of Facebook's sustainability directors, when
that deal was announced.
"As
Facebook expands, we need more data centers to power our platform, more
office facilities for our employees, and more energy for both," the
company said.
However,
Facebook’s siting policy prioritizing clean energy for new data centers
will help it meet and eventually exceed its goal, and other companies
who want a clean cloud should make a similar commitment.
The menace of
the greenhouse effect is threatening to tear the earth apart as climate
change has become the greatest challenge of our time. Climate change is a
fundamental issue of social justice and peace in our world. Climate
change will devastate the poor most directly and will create conditions
for new conflicts over land and water resources. Being carbon neutral
means having a net zero carbon footprint, or achieving net zero carbon
emissions by balancing a measured amount of carbon released with an
equivalent amount offset, or buying enough carbon credits (tradeable
certificates or permits representing the right to emit 1 tonne of CO2)
to make up the difference.
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