Apple, Facebook and Google continue to lead efforts to build an Internet that is renewably powered, but uncooperative electric companies and rapid energy demand growth for the Internet places those ambitions under threat, according to a new report that Greenpeace released yesterday, Clicking Clean: A Guide to Building the Green Internet.
Greenpeace’s report details the immense power that technology companies have either to drive a renewable energy revolution, or to chain the new digital economy to old, polluting sources of power. The stakes are high: if the Internet were a country, its electricity demand would currently rank sixth.
Continued resistance to renewable investments from coal-heavy monopoly utilities in data center hot spots such as Virginia, North Carolina and Taiwan is causing the rapid growth in the digital world to increase the demand for dirty energy.
Greenpeace found that tech companies are increasingly turning to the smart choice of renewable energy to power the Internet, but they're hitting a wall of stubborn monopoly power companies that refuse to switch to 21st century sources of energy.
Internet companies need to work together to get cleaner energy from their electric utilities, appealing to policymakers for changes in some cases. This past year saw the biggest Internet companies work together with activists in the fight for net neutrality to successfully overcome the monopolies of AT&T and Comcast, who wanted to create an Internet “slow lane.” Internet companies need to work together again to push utilities and policymakers to provide them with 100 percent renewable energy, and avoid the creation of an Internet “dirty lane.”
Greenpeace’s report also highlights the continued lack of transparency by Amazon.com, whose cloud computing subsidiary Amazon Web Services (AWS) hosts much of the Internet in its data centers. AWS has taken some significant steps over the last year, including committing to power its operations with 100 percent renewable energy, but the lack of basic transparency about its energy use is a growing concern for its customers.
Although AWS did announce plans to purchase more than 100 megawatts (MW) of wind energy this past year, Greenpeace discovered that AWS continues to rapidly expand in Virginia. Based on an analysis of permit applications by Amazon subsidiary Vadata, AWS made investments in new data center capacity in 2014 that would increase its energy demand by 200 MW in that state, where the utility Dominion powers the grid with only 2 percent renewable energy. That 200 MW of new electricity demand from Amazon in Virginia would be equivalent to adding 160,000 average U.S. homes to the Virginia grid.
The report found that Apple continues to be the most aggressive in powering its data center operations with renewable energy. Despite continued rapid growth, Apple appears to have kept pace with its supply of renewable energy, maintaining its claim of a 100 percent renewably powered cloud for another year, followed by Yahoo, Facebook and Google with 73 percent, 49 percent and 46 percent clean energy respectively.
Streaming video services like Netflix, Hulu and YouTube are driving much the growth in the Internet’s energy demand. Video streaming is estimated to account for more than 60 percent of consumer internet traffic today, and is expected to grow to 76 percent by 2018.
Greenpeace is calling on all major Internet companies to:
- Make a long-term commitment to become 100 percent renewably powered.
- Commit to transparency on IT performance and consumption of resources, including the sources of electricity, to enable customers, investors and stakeholders to measure progress toward that goal.
- Develop a strategy for increasing their supply of renewable energy, through a mixture of procurement, investment and corporate advocacy to both electricity suppliers and government decision-makers.
Or share this news on twitter:
Find out if which Internet brands are going green...and which are falling behind: http://t.co/2aP6TaOWiz #clickclean pic.twitter.com/brPRJdKf0o
— Greenpeace USA (@greenpeaceusa) May 12, 2015
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Here are three new films to watch this Earth Week that will transport you from pole to pole and introduce you to the scientists and activists working to save our shared home.
1. The Year Earth Changed
Where to Watch: Apple TV+
When to Watch: From April 16
The coronavirus pandemic has brought home the stakes of humanity's impact on the environment. But the lockdowns also proved how quickly nature can recover when humans give it the space. Birds sang in empty cities, whales surfaced in Glacier Bay and capybara roamed the South American suburbs.
The Year Earth Changed captures this unique year with footage from more than 30 lockdowned cities between May 2020 to January 2021. Narrated by renowned wildlife broadcaster David Attenborough, the film explores what positive lessons we can take from the experience of a quieter, less trafficked world.
"What the film shows is that the natural world can bounce back remarkably quickly when we take a step back and reduce our impact as we did during lockdown," executive producer Alice Keens-Soper of BBC Studios Natural History Unit told EcoWatch. "If we are willing to make even small changes to our habits, the natural world can flourish. We need to learn how to co-exist with nature and understand that we are not separate from it- for example if we closed some of our beaches at for a few weeks during the turtle breeding we see that it can make a huge difference to their success. There are many ways that we can adapt our behavior to allow the natural world to thrive as it did in lockdown."
2. After Antarctica
Where to Watch: San Francisco International Film Festival
When to Watch: 12 a.m. PST April 9 to 11:59 p.m. April 18
In 1989, Will Steger led an international team of six scientists and explorers to be the first humans to cross Antarctica by dogsled. Steger and his team weren't just in it for the adventure. They also wanted to draw attention to the ways in which the climate crisis was already transforming the icy continent and to rally support for the renewal of the Antarctic Treaty, which would keep the continent safe from extractive industries.
In After Antarctica, award-winning filmmaker Tasha Van Zandt follows Steger 30 years later as he travels the Arctic this time, reflecting on his original journey and once again bringing awareness to changes in a polar landscape. The film intersperses this contemporary journey with footage from the original expedition, some of which has never been seen before.
"Will's life journey as an explorer and climate activist has led him not only to see more of the polar world than anyone else alive today, but to being an eyewitness to the changes occurring across both poles," Van Zandt told EcoWatch. "But now, these changes are happening in all of our own backyards and we have all become eyewitnesses. Through my journey with Will, I have learned that although we cannot always control change, we can change our response. I feel strongly that this is a message that resonates when we look at the current state of the world, as we each have power and control over how we choose to respond to hardships, and we all have the power to unite with others through collective action around a common goal."
After Antarctica is available to stream once you purchase a ticket to the San Francisco International Film Festival. If you miss it this weekend, it will screen again at the Minneapolis St. Paul International Film Festival from May 13 to May 23.
Tasha Van Zandt
3. The Race to Save the World
Where to Watch: Virtual Cinema
When to Watch: From Earth Day, April 22
While many films about the climate crisis seek to raise awareness about the extent of the problem, The Race to Save the World focuses on the people who are trying to stop it. The film tells the story of climate activists ranging from 15-year-old Aji to 72-year-old Miriam who are working to create a sustainable future. It follows them from the streets to the courtroom to their homes, and explores the impact of their advocacy on their personal lives and relationships.
Emmy award-winning documentary filmmaker Joe Gantz told EcoWatch that he wanted to make a film about climate change, but did not want to depress viewers with overwhelming statistics. Instead, he chose to inspire them by sharing the stories of people trying to make a difference.
"Unless millions of people take to the streets and make their voices heard for a livable future, the politicians are not going to get on board to help make the changes needed for a sustainable future," Gantz told Ecowatch. "I think that The Race To Save The World will energize and inspire people to take action so that future generations, as well as the plants, animals and ecosystems, can survive and thrive on this planet."
Check back with EcoWatch on the morning of Earth Day for a special preview of this inspiring film!