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 power plants generate the majority of the countries' energy. North America's office technology caused one-fourth of the world's IT-related emissions in 2002, but China has since become the world leader, accounting for 23 percent of IT emissions in 2007.

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The emissions growth comes after years of increased energy demand from the world's computer servers. The amount of electricity required for servers doubled between 2000 and 2005, according to a Stanford University study.

The energy...