Planet geek – How to reduce the ecological impact of digital

Le digital would be responsible for 2 to 4% of global greenhouse gas emissions, more than twice what air transport generates. This is the case, for example, in France, where a Senate study estimates the carbon footprint of digital technology at 15 million tons of CO equivalent₂ per year. However, according to the German environmental research institute Öko-Institut, which has calculated the average emissions per person for different positions, the manufacture of devices accounts for 40%.

Production-related emissions come from chemicals used in the extraction and processing of raw materials, as well as from the energy needed to manufacture semiconductors. According to these calculations, the manufacture of a smartphone generates about 250 kg of CO₂.