6.2.3 Network Transmission

There is also an array of other industry sustainability standards and metrics which are increasingly being referenced in policy (which the sector welcomes). For information on Data Centre energy efficiency and other sustainability metrics, and related Data Centre standards see (techUK, 2017a) and (techUK 2017b).

Although still used, the Code of Conduct is now relatively old and until 2020 was only originally a framework. To be more in line with the latest sustainability strategy, the European Commission recently released the ‘2021 Best Practice Guidelines’ (European Commission, 2021a), which is a supplement to the Code of Conduct as an education and reference document to assist data centre operators in identifying and implementing measures to improve energy efficiency. Under best practices concerning associated carbon impacts, there are specific guidelines on ‘Energy Use and Environmental Measurement’, ‘Energy Use and Environmental Collection and Logging’, and ‘Energy Use and Environmental Reporting’. Depending on the level of control of the data centre that an individual organisation has, the general policy is that all actors should ‘Introduce a plan for Environmental Management in accordance with emerging EU guidelines and internationally standardised methodologies’ and ‘Introduce a plan for Energy Management in accordance with emerging EU guidelines and internationally standardised methodologies’.

Also, back in 2008 the United States established the voluntary National Data Center Energy Efficiency Information Program. The program engages numerous industry stakeholders who are developing and deploying a variety of tools and informational resources to assist data centre operators in their efforts to reduce energy consumption in their facilities (US EPA 2008). Since then we have seen other voluntary and self-regulatory initiatives emerge.

An example of the increasing focus on Data Centres by national governments is the proposal of the German Federal Environment Agency to create a register for data centres to monitor future efficiency targets. The agency is therefore preparing a uniform statistical survey of data centres to create a register and to serve as a basis for effective sector coupling. Sector coupling is the idea of interconnecting (integrating) the energy consuming sectors – buildings (heating and cooling), transport, and industry – with the power producing sector. The digital strategy also specifically addresses streaming services providers, encouraging them to operate with data centres with 100% green electricity and to make ‘sensible use’ of waste heat. In France, both the French government and the senate released recommendations in 2020 on the 'green digital transition'. The senate presented a draft legislation, mentioning limiting the impact of video streaming and improving energy efficiency in data centres. Mentioning the limiting of infinite scrolling, a technique that loads content continuously as the user scrolls down the page. Also, adapting the quality of the downloaded video to the maximum resolution of the terminal. On data centres specifically, the recommendations would require data centres to subscribe to binding multi-year commitments to reduce their environmental impacts (monitored by ARCEP) and by subjecting tax benefits to environmental performance.

6.2.3 Network Transmission

Policy makers and industry have a strong focus on improving the energy efficiency of network technologies. This is reflected by German Environment Minister Schulze, commenting on research into the CO2 emissions from video streaming commissioned by the German Federal Environment Agency: "To date, the data available on how digital infrastructure affects the climate has been extremely sparse. This is why we are working to bridge the existing gaps in our knowledge with solid research. After all, good policy needs to be based on good data. The most recent findings now show us that it is possible to stream data without negatively impacting the climate if you do it right and choose the right method for data transmission. From an environmental perspective, it would be a good idea to set up more public wifi hotspots, as this is more climate friendly than streaming in mobile networks. The climate benefit of working from home and video conferencing can even increase with the right transmission methods and more efficient data centres. My goal is to capitalise on the German EU Council Presidency to reach a common position on environmentally friendly digitalisation because the best approach would be to set good standards throughout Europe." (German Ministry for Environment, 2020b)

Dirk Messner, President of the Federal Environment Agency, further commented: "This is good news for people who like to watch movies and series. You can use streaming services at home with a fibre optic cable or VDSL without having to feel guilty about the climate. But the volumes of data all around us will grow steadily over the next few years, be it in the form of networked vehicles, home cinema or video conferencing. This is why it is important to find climate friendly transmission channels. Our research shows that we should step up investments in expanding our fibre optic networks. The new 5G transmission technology is also promising in terms of climate change mitigation." (ibid.)