The Greening Of IT In Asia

According to Gartner, at present the IT industry is seen as part of the
environmental problem, instead of being part of the solution; it is estimated
that IT does as much damage to the environment as the airline industry

Catastrophic natural disasters, in recent years, have become ever-present
reminders of the power of nature. Events such as the devastating earthquake in
Sichuan province, hurricane Ike in the US, and the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami,
have shocked the world and they are been heralded as a wake-up call.

Home to some of the world's fastest developing regions, it's perhaps no
surprise that such changes are so evident here in Asia Pacific. China and India
will account for 45 percent of the increase in global primary energy demand by
2030. With both countries more than doubling their energy use over that period.

Pressing environmental challenges include urban air quality, fresh water
stress, agricultural land use (a threat to food security) and increased waste.
IDC estimates that roughly 50 cents (US) is spent on energy for every dollar of
computer hardware and this is expected to increase by 54 percent to 71 cents by
2010.

The good news is that there is a growing range of options available for
reducing and changing consumption patterns as well as dealing with electronic
waste. Here are some key considerations for the IT industry and users alike:

Saving energy at home

By simply unplugging appliances such as coffee pots, toasters, hair dryers
and computer cords when leaving the house, and switching off large energy
consumers like entertainment centers when leaving for vacation, harmful carbon
dioxide emissions can be reduced; not to mention money saved on energy bills.
Energystar.gov estimates that it costs US homeowners $100 per year to power
appliances in standby mode.

Supporting initiatives such as Climate Savers Computing will help in the
global push to improve energy usage-the group's mission is to reduce global
carbon dioxide emissions from the operation of computers by 50 percent by
promoting development, deployment and adoption of smart technologies for
computer power efficiency.

Addressing corporate computing environments

Compared to households, data centers and business computing environments are
large-scale users of energy, and indeed energy efficiency has emerged as one of
the most critical issues facing data centers today. The group works to define
new policies to improve performance and reduce hardware power requirements. This
will be done by developing, adopting and promoting new industry-wide standards,
best practices, and using technologies designed to optimize today's data center
environments.

Green manufacturing

Smart uses of technology can also go a long way in improving green
credentials of manufacturing across multiple industries. From deploying
alternative energy sources such as solar or wind power, implementing new waste
water treatment or recycling solutions, to increasing use of ocean versus air
shipping, carbon dioxide emissions and water pollution can be significantly
reduced. One simple way for manufacturers to improve their environmental
protection measures is to redesign packaging to reduce their use of plastic and
paper, aiming for 100 percent recycled and recyclable product packaging.

Lobbying for new policies

While ongoing initiatives and awards such as the National Excellent CSR
Fulfillment Award (China), The Prime Minister's Industrial Awards (Thailand),
Singapore Environmental Achievement Award, Clean Production Enterprise Award
(Shenzhen) and Kanto Area Chairman's Award (Fujisawa) should be encouraged and
supported, there is still some way to go before government policy frameworks in
Asia are on a par with other regions.

In Europe for example, the Restriction of Hazardous Substances (RoHS)
directive helps in eliminating toxic substances from electronic equipment while
Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) requires equipment to be
appropriately marked for recycling. Interestingly, China has followed suit and
adopted RoHS guidelines of its own.

Meanwhile, Gartner expects more collaboration between enterprises and
governments to accelerate eco-friendly efforts. And as CIOs are increasingly
pressurized to cut IT costs. Especially in these times of financial downturn,
there will be even more demand for smart innovations and adoptions of IT that
are both green and cost-effective.

Too much to ask for?

Forward-looking technology leaders are seeking ways to simultaneously
incorporate environmental protection into the home, corporate computing
environment and their own manufacturing operations. For instance, the new
EcoTrac symbol used in the hard disk drive industry identifies products that
provide benefits to customers through power efficiency and minimal impact to the
environment over the product lifecycle. Similarly, new CoolSpin hard drive
technology delivers high levels of power efficiency and quiet operation for
digital video applications. CoolSpin drives use a low-power motor design which,
in turn, lowers energy costs for consumers. On the manufacturing side, the Super
Eco-Factory certification was created as a way to develop and promote
industry-leading environmental practices and to apply them globally to hard disk
drive manufacturing facilities.

Such innovative thinking is attracting the attention of venture capital
investors, who have high hopes for green-tech initiatives. According to a recent
KPMG research, investors see green IT ventures leading the way in IPO activities
in the coming year-especially given high fuel costs and ever-rising green
consciousness. Most respondents (70 percent) expected a 10 percent increase or
more in 2009 in IPO activity among alternative fuels, solar power, auto and wind
ventures. The technology industry will be eagerly anticipating successful
listings to bolster and validate the burgeoning green technology sector.

So, as we have seen, environmental protection today is somewhat more complex
than the old '3 Rs' rule of 'Reduce, Reuse, Recycle', and IT firms have a major
role to play in driving towards creative solutions for home and corporate users,
as well as manufacturers, while governments should continue to foster
collaboration to accelerate environmental protection measures. We can no longer
ignore the wake-up call to radically rethink our relationship with the
environment, for the good of industry as well as society.