THE CONCEPT OF DIGITAL POLLUTION

The concept of digital pollution

Digital pollution is still little known to the general public. This phenomenon is very
real and is as bad as civilian air pollution.
We do not see it but the entities and digital objects that we use daily pollute; they are:
the internet, smartphones and tablets, streaming as well as emails and more!
This pollution is generated by all new technologies. We can identify two “moments”
in this type of pollution: the pollution created by the operation of the Internet
network and that produced by the manufacture of computer tools.
Huge amounts of energy are consumed by the web. It is true that the Internet is well
dematerialized but we cannot forget that it needs an infrastructure to work. It is this
infrastructure that physically pollutes our planet: a set of cables, antennas, data
centers, etc ... which are there to allow the Internet and the cloud to work.
If the web was a country, it would be the 6th most polluting nation in the world!

Some figures to illustrate this phenomenon

According to a study by the French Environment and Energy Management Agency
(ADEME), a company with 100 employees emits more than 13 tonnes of CO² per
year, the equivalent of 14 Paris -New York round-trip flights ! Many experts agree
that sending an email is the consumption of a light bulb for 24 hours.
This year, the digital world will certainly exceed aviation in terms of pollution, for
the reasons below:
- 10 billion emails are sent per hour worldwide.
- Kilos of fossil fuels and chemicals, as well as tons of water are consumed to make
our devices.

What to do to limit your carbon footprint

Do you want to limit your carbon footprint and move towards an alternative and
eco-responsible digital world? Just adopt these simple everyday gestures:
- Empty your mailbox regularly.
- Try not to accumulate emails, folders, photos in a cloud.
- Install a spam filter.
- Unsubscribe newsletters that you never open.
- Turn off your devices (because in standby it consumes).
- Choose repair or reconditioned material.
- Watch TV rather than streaming (very energy intensive).
- Opt for wi-fi rather than 4G or 5G.
- Communicate by SMS (this is the least polluting means of digital communication).

Now, it's your turn to play ! Adapted from www.naeco.bzh

How can we reduce the impact of digital technology on the
environment?
Green solutions are obviously quite numerous when you are a blogger, just as if you
simply want to create an eco-responsible website for yourself or for your company. But
what about reducing the impact of digital pollution on a daily basis? In this respect, as
users, we can also act to minimize these impacts.

Aim for equipment longevity

Digital equipment has environmental consequences throughout its life cycle. The

production of their components requires a lot of energy, chemical treatments as well as
rare metals. Always remember that the best waste is the one you don't produce! So,
before you buy, always ask yourself if the purchase is really necessary. Or, is the electronic
device you want to dispose of still in working order? If so, consider reselling it. There is a
growing market today for reconditioned appliances. On the other hand, if it no longer
works, always remember to recycle your electronic waste properly.

Do emails pollute?

The impact of sending an email depends on the weight of the attachments, its storage
time on a server but also on the number of recipients. To lighten your emails think about:

​Target recipients, clean up your mailing lists and delete attachments from a message you
reply to
​Optimize the size of the files you transmit
​Consider using drop-off sites rather than sending as an attachment
​Regularly clean your mailbox and unsubscribe from mailing lists that do not interest you.

Does the data storage pollute?

Data storage is increasingly being done on mail servers and on the Cloud. To optimize
your storage of documents, videos, photos or music, think about:

​Only keep what is useful

​Store and use as much data as possible locally
​Only store what you need on the Cloud
Lastly, note that online videos account for 60% of the global data flow and are responsible
for nearly 1% of global CO2 emissions. So, to reduce their impact, consider disabling
automatic playback in application settings. Give preference to downloaded music or
audio streaming platforms rather than those with music clips.

Taken from green-hero.info