Office-related carbon emissions surge.

• Author: Block, Ben
• Position: EYE ON EARTH - Brief article

Growing reliance on the Internet is leading to a rapid increase in greenhouse gas emissions. In 2007, emissions from the world's estimated 30 million computer servers and other information technology (IT) systems accounted for some 2 percent of global carbon dioxide emissions--equivalent to the annual output of more than half a billion automobiles, according to a McKinsey & Company analysis.

The rise in emissions is due largely to greater Internet use in China and India, where coal-fired...