How 'green' is the internet?

Things to think about

1. Before viewing

We often consider how environmentally friendly things like cars and buildings are, but have you ever thought about how 'green' the internet is?

How much time would you, your family and your friends spend using the internet each day?

2. As you view

Some big technology companies are rated 'brown' and others 'green'. What do these ratings mean?

How do the ratings relate to renewable and non-renewable sources of energy?

3. After viewing

Why will the amount of energy the internet uses increase in coming years?

The clip mentions two forms of renewable energy. Can you name them? What does renewable mean?

4. Next steps

Find out how electricity is generated in your region. Are the energy sources renewable or non-renewable?

Draw and label a picture that shows how electricity is supplied to your home or school. Include the source of the energy and describe why it is renewable or non-renewable.

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2 mins 4 secs

Source: Hungry Beast | Learning area: Science | Primary: Year 6 | Secondary: Year 7


Do you know that every second of online video you watch puts 0.2 grams of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere? Watch this clip to discover how much energy the internet uses and where it comes from. You might be surprised!


00:00:01:00VOICEOVER:How green is your internet? Every second of online video we watch puts 0.2 grams of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. Doesn't sound like much, except that every day YouTube viewers get through two billion videos. At a conservative average of ten seconds each, that's around 4,000 tonnes of CO2. Earth's 44 million computer servers contribute almost 2% of the planet's carbon emissions. That's about the same as the aviation industry or a medium-sized country. Server farms, also known as data centres, consume more than 130 billion kWh a year using almost as much energy to cool servers as to power them. Last month, Greenpeace released a report called 'How dirty is your data?' which concluded that the tech industries' brownest companies are Apple and Facebook whose centres rely on coal-based electricity more than those of their rivals. The report ranked Yahoo and Google as the greenest. The big tech companies ARE concerned about their carbon footprint. The less electricity they burn, the lower their bills. Google and Facebook take up around 10% each of the world's server space. Facebook's newest data centre relies heavily on coal but is also mixing in wind and solar. Custom-built, it can conserve 2.5 million kWh a year saving 1,065 tonnes of carbon dioxide. Google's goal is to become carbon neutral. It has created Google Energy - a company that invests in renewable start-ups pumping more than 100 million dollars into wind farms, 350 million dollars into solar and 20 million dollars into Makani Power, a company that generates electricity by flying kites tapping into wind currents at altitudes wind turbines can't reach. But here's the question - with only a quarter of the world's population online, and our current internet use set to quadruple by 2014, there's a good chance any progress made with greening data centres will ultimately be swallowed up by our own appetite for all things digital.

...Read more >

For teachers

  • Science: Year 7
  • Strand: Science Understanding
  • Substrand: Earth and space sciences
  • Content code: ACSSU116
  • Content description: Some of Earth's resources are renewable, but others are non-renewable
  • Science: Year 6
  • Strand: Science Understanding
  • Substrand: Physical sciences
  • Content code: ACSSU219
  • Content description: Energy from a variety of sources can be used to generate electricity
  • Science: Year 7
  • Strand: Science as a Human Endeavour
  • Substrand: Use and influence of science
  • Content code: ACSHE120
  • Content description: Science and technology contribute to finding solutions to a range of contemporary issues; these solutions may impact on other areas of society and involve ethical considerations
  • Science: Year 6
  • Strand: Science as a Human Endeavour
  • Substrand: Use and influence of science
  • Content code: ACSHE100
  • Content description: Scientific understandings, discoveries and inventions are used to solve problems that directly affect peoples' lives
  • Science: Year 7
  • Strand: Science as a Human Endeavour
  • Substrand: Use and influence of science
  • Content code: ACSHE121
  • Content description: Science understanding influences the development of practices in areas of human activity such as industry, agriculture and marine and terrestrial resource management

About this resource


Hungry Beast

Date first broadcast:

18 May 2011

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How 'green' is the internet?