The digital technologies used within the European Union alone represent 40% of the Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions that Europe has to maintain the commitment that the planet’s temperature be below 1 .5 degrees.
This is revealed by the study ‘Digital Technologies in Europe: an environmental approach to the life cycle’ promoted by the group Los Verdes/European Free Alliance in the European Parliament and published this Wednesday in Spain by the Green Transition Foundation.
Digital technologies in Europe
The study aims to answer questions such as what environmental impacts digital technologies have in Europe or what are the current trends in the digital sector and how they condition the achievement of the environmental objectives of the European Union, according to a Green Transition statement.
The president of the Green Transition, Pepe Larios, has assured that the report concludes that digital technologies affect “very seriously” to the environment and it is expected that “its repercussions will increase exponentially over the next 5-10 years”. Therefore, according to Larios, “This dismantles the myth of the immateriality of the digital world, the belief that it is ecological by definition”.
The research shows that 40% of the environmental impacts of information and communication technologies are related to the depletion of metallic mining resources and the use of fossil resources, mainly in the manufacturing phase of the devices.
electrical consumption
The study also indicates that about 10% of the electricity consumption in the European Union is allocated to digital technologies and that the greatest impact occurs during the manufacturing process, before the devices are used. In addition, 71% of the environmental damage comes from the devices intended for the end user and not from the data centers (18% of the damage), nor from the network (11%), while 82% of the waste is generated during the making.
The report also establishes a series of recommendations such as establishing effective legislation that fights against planned obsolescence by increasing the duration and reuse of technological products. Likewise, it is advisable to strengthen the energy autonomy of the European Union with respect to raw materials to make it the industrial leader in secondary raw materials through recyclability standards and objectives and guaranteeing the systematic collection of electronic waste.
Font: GREEN EFE
Reference article: https://efeverde.com/la-tecnologia-digital-supone-el-40-de-emisions-de-efecto-invernadero-en-europa/
