Will the lights go out for IT?

It's probably too warm in your back office where the server and all of its components reside. That should come as no surprise. IT energy consumption in the United States is growing dramatically, according to a new report by the Technology CEO Council. And every kilowatt hour of energy used by IT replaces 10 kilowatt hours of energy that would have been used elsewhere. This doesn't mean the lights will go out tomorrow. It does mean, however, that IT, like every big energy user, must figure out a way to lower the thermostat, so to speak. That's doubly hard because most IT systems need to operate 24/7. That has become a way of life.

IT currently uses about six percent of all U.S. electricity, up from two to three percent in 2000, according to the report by John Laitner, director of economic policy analysis at the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE). Dell CEO Michael Dell joined others at a press conference recently on the growing importance of green technologies. He said computer users should expect to see more energy-saving devices entering the market in the near future.

"As an industry, we have begun to take up the [environmental] issue in a serious way," Dell said. "It's an issue that customers care about." In addition to the ACEEE report, the Technology CEO Council released its own report called "A Smarter Shade of Green." It lays out the group's environmental policy principles, including:

• The U.S. government should invest more money in green research.
• Governments across the world should reduce tariffs on green technologies.
• Companies shouldn't wait for government mandates or incentives but should adopt energy-efficient strategies on their own.

For more on technology and energy conservation:
- See this Techworld article