ACS & AIIA combine resources to forge industry leadership on ICT role in Environment & Sustainability

The Australian Computer Society (ACS) and the Australian Information Industry Association (AIIA) today released two significant studies into environmental sustainability and the role of the technology industry:

• The ACS Carbon and Computers in Australia Report – produced through Connection Research – provides definitive analysis of the Australian ICT industry’s energy consumption and carbon footprint.

• ICT for Eco-Sustainability: an assessment of the capability of the Australian ICT sector – was commissioned by AIIA through RMIT University. The paper analyses the capability of 133 Australian ICT firms to deliver ICT solutions that enhance environmental performance across 52 performance indicators.

“The ICT industry takes its environmental responsibility very seriously. The ACS and AIIA are working together to provide a more unified industry voice on this important issue,” said ACS CEO Bruce Lakin. “This ACS report provides the first definitive analysis of domestic and commercial impact that technology has on Australia’s environmental performance and provides the industry with the tools to measure and improve that performance into the future.”

“Besides mitigating the direct impact of technology use on the environment, the ICT industry is uniquely positioned to improve environmental performance across the economy,” added AIIA CEO Ian Birks.

“Through the RMIT study commissioned by AIIA, we now have a clear understanding of the capacity of the Australian industry to deliver innovative solutions across the board. This is the first time the ICT industry has been able to benchmark its capacity and will provide the basis for improvement across the board.

Among the key findings released, the ACS report quantifies ICT’s share of Australia’s total carbon emissions at 2.7 percent; technology is directly responsible for more than 7 percent of all electricity generated nationally.

The biggest components of ICT carbon emissions are data centres at 18.8 percent, followed by PCs (15.8 percent), printers and imaging equipment (15.7 percent) and servers (14.7 percent). Mobile phones and portable equipment account for only one percent of ICT energy consumption despite their widespread use.

Enterprise ICT carbon footprint is split over many sectors, with Education (7.3 percent) and Healthcare and Social Assistance (5.9 percent) leading consumption. Household ICT usage, on the other hand, represents more than the largest six industry sectors combined – at 34.6 percent of the total.

The AIIA/RMIT Study analyses Green ICT Capability (GITCAP): the ability of an ICT company to innovate, produce market and realise value of ICT solutions that enhance environmental performance in any area of the economy.

Australian ICT firms demonstrated a GITCAP maturity index of 46.5 and ‘Basic Level’ of maturity. Global Leaders have a GITCAP maturity index of 94, and the fast followers have a maturity index of 79. Those that either lack or assign no priority to Green ICT perform at a maturity index of 25. 

Thirty-nine per cent of firms stated that they have a very clear strategy for enabling the eco-sustainability of other industries. More than 50 percent have allocated budget for developing Green ICT products and services.

“Improving natural resource utilisation and environmental performance is an important element of sustainability that must be addressed urgently,” said Mr Lakin.

“These studies provide the framework for improving performance across the ICT industry and extending enormous benefits into the wider economy,” concluded Mr Birks.