Green hosting or eco-friendly hosting is

Internet hosting An Internet hosting service is a service that runs servers connected to the Internet, allowing organizations and individuals to serve content or host services connected to the Internet. A common kind of hosting is web hosting. Most hosting provi ...

that involves strategies to reduce the

environmental impact Environmental issues are effects of human activity on the biophysical environment, most often of which are harmful effects that cause environmental degradation. Environmental protection is the practice of protecting the natural environment on t ...

of their activities. These may include the increased use of

renewable energy Renewable energy is energy that is collected from renewable resources that are naturally replenished on a human timescale. It includes sources such as sunlight, wind, the movement of water, and geothermal heat. Although most renewable energy ...

planting trees Tree-planting is the process of transplanting tree seedlings, generally for forestry, land reclamation, or landscaping purpose. It differs from the transplantation of larger trees in arboriculture, and from the lower cost but slower and less re ...

, plants, and grass around and over

data center A data center (American English) or data centre (British English)See spelling differences. is a building, a dedicated space within a building, or a group of buildings used to house computer systems and associated components, such as telecommunic ...

s, and more day-to-day activities such as

energy conservation Energy conservation is the effort to reduce wasteful energy consumption by using fewer energy services. This can be done by using energy more effectively (using less energy for continuous service) or changing one's behavior to use less service (f ...

and the use of energy-saving appliances. Green hosting may also utilize

green marketing Green marketing is the marketing of products that are presumed to be environmentally safe. It incorporates a broad range of activities, including product modification, changes to the production process, sustainable packaging, as well as modifying ...

, to allay consumer concerns, and

carbon offsetting A carbon offset is a reduction or removal of emissions of carbon dioxide or other greenhouse gases made in order to compensate for emissions made elsewhere. Offsets are measured in tonnes of carbon dioxide-equivalent (CO2e). One ton of carbo ...

, the purchasing of green certificates, to offset

carbon emissions Greenhouse gas emissions from human activities strengthen the greenhouse effect, contributing to climate change. Most is carbon dioxide from burning fossil fuels: coal, oil, and natural gas. The largest emitters include coal in China and larg ...

Take up

Adoption of green hosting was initially very slow in the early 2000s, largely because many of the first hosting companies to offer the service were doing so at a price premium. Moreover, awareness among consumers about the environmental impacts of hosting was at best limited. Today though, the market has changed dramatically, with many hosting companies offering green services at no extra cost. Consumer awareness has also increased. A recent study of 543 US adults found that more than 60 percent of people are swayed to purchase from an online shop if the website explicitly claims to use green energy. Seventy-eight percent of consumers say that the environmental practices of online shops are important to them and over 70 percent believe that using a green hosting provider is a valid and acceptable way for a website to put across its 'green' image. World Internet usage statistics show that the Internet is still rapidly growing in the U.S. and growing from 400 to 1000% a year, worldwide. In fact, in 2005, Jonathan Koomey reported that the total electric bill to operate those servers and related infrastructure equipment was $2.7 billion in the United States and $7.2 billion worldwide. a web server on average produces more than 630 kg of and consumes 1,000 kWh of energy annually. A green host on the other hand, theoretically produces zero . In 2008, it was estimated that if energy consumption due to web hosting keeps raising at the then-current rate by 2020, then the industry would be polluting the planet more than the

airline industry An airline is a company that provides air transport services for traveling passengers and freight. Airlines use aircraft to supply these services and may form partnerships or alliances with other airlines for codeshare agreements, in whic ...

. The percentage of electricity consumption varies between organizations, but the

United States Department of Energy The United States Department of Energy (DOE) is an executive department of the U.S. federal government that oversees U.S. national energy policy and manages the research and development of nuclear power and nuclear weapons in the United Stat ...

estimates that 10 percent of the

United States federal government The federal government of the United States (U.S. federal government or U.S. government) is the Federation#Federal governments, national government of the United States, a federal republic located primarily in North America, composed of 50 ...

’s electricity use goes to data centers.

Green hosting strategies

A green organization doesn't necessarily have to have access to green power from wind, water, or solar energy, they can also purchase green certificates to offset the use and cost of conventional energy. Hosting sites that contain Green-E certification labels are organizations that voluntarily adhere to strict environmental guidelines. Other recognized certificates which are regularly used in the web hosting industry include The Gold Standard,

Green Power Partnership The United States Environmental Protection Agency's Green Power Partnership is a voluntary program that supports the organizational procurement of green power by offering expert advice, technical support, tools and resources. It provides public hea ...

, VCS (Verified Carbon Standard) and Climate Action Reserve.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Green Hosting Web hosting

Take up

Green hosting strategies

See also

References