Green Considerations

Year-on-year growth in consumption of digital devices is creating environmental pressures, both around the disposal of unused electronics, their packaging, and the power our current devices consume.

International environmental group Greenpeace has been issuing regular reports scoring major global electronics makers on their progress toward greener products.

From production impact on natural resources to energy consumption of active devices to the mounting problem of e-waste, governments, industry, interest groups and consumers are all beginning to count the cost of our love for digital technologies on the environment. Some major companies and national and state governments in particular have begun taking a closer look at how this impact can be mitigated, and some are taking drastic steps from design to regulation to lessen this impact going forward. The results may reshape how we use these devices and the services and media that they carry.

Signals:

Affected by brown-outs partially attributed to the massive energy consumption of its growing population of digital devices, the state of California put new regulations in place to limit the amount of electricity TVs can consume, a move which is being considered by several other US states in the wake of its implementation.
As far back as 2004 the European Union began addressing management of e-waste. Various countries, including Germany, have taken steps to limit the disposal of electronics such as televisions and PCs. Other national and regional governments, including some in Canada, have moved to institute similar rules. Canada made a symbolic gesture at the 2010 Winter Olympic Games, manufacturing event medals from e-waste material.
Individual companies have stepped up efforts to produce greener electronics as well, including major manufacturers such as H-P, Nokia, and Apple, with varying degrees of success. Nokia has scored highly in ratings by interest groups for its work in changing charging and power consumption technologies, and eliminating certain materials from the manufacturing process.

Implications:

Limits on device disposal may eventually slow purchases of new electronics, impacting upgrading cycles, and changing consumption habits.
As more information about energy use and e-waste becomes public through government and industry action, consumers may change their usage habits, curtailing media consumption as they have altered energy usage in the home in some areas.
Countries that encourage research and development in green electronics may begin to benefit from the “halo” effect of supporting resource management in technology. Already, Finland, Korea and Japan are becoming noted for their environmental management efforts in this area.

Countertrends:

Rapidly rising uptake of new products and device categories, increasing consumption of power-intensive media, and faster innovation cycles that produce new product on a shorter timescale are all acting as countertrends to the greening of technology. In particular, growing uptake in developing markets threatens to create e-waste crises in these markets.

Extrapolations:

Funding for investment in green electronics technologies may be rewarded by consumers eager to get more out of their technology investments. R&D choices will increasingly be driven by both regulation in this area and consumer demand for low-power, low-impact devices. Major moves, such as agreement on common power charging platforms, display and materials standards may reshape the devices we use, and the media and services we consume.