Researchers at McMaster University, Canada, studied the carbon footprint of consumer devices such as Data centers and smartphones will be the most damaging information and communications technologies to the environment by 2040. Source: McMaster Universitysmartphones, laptops, tablets, desktops as well as data centers and communication networks as early as 2005. The results indicate that data centers and smartphones will be the most damaging information and communications technologies (ICT) to the environment in terms of global carbon footprint by 2040.

Software was identified as driving the consumption of ICT, which was found to have a greater impact on emissions than previously thought. If trends continue, ICT will account for as much as 14 percent, up from the current 1.5 percent, of the total global footprint by 2040, accounting for more than half of the current relative contribution of the whole transportation sector.

Telecommunications networks and data centers consume a lot of energy to process and transmit every text message and phone call. And most of these facilities are still powered by fossil fuel-based electricity sources.

By 2020, the footprint of smart phones alone would surpass the individual contribution of desktops, laptops and displays. While smartphones consume little energy to operate, 85% of their emissions impact comes from production. They also have a short life which drives further production of new models and an extraordinary amount of waste.

The researchers recommend an immediate transition by data centers to renewable energy, as well as less frequent purchases by consumers of the latest smartphone models.