[LeifCarrotson]

Exactly.

If I hypothetically ran an inefficient 500W dedicated server 24/7 for one 8760 hour year, and my electric utility produces 1 lbs of CO2 per kwh, that's about 2 tons of CO2 due to my programming habits per year.

Last year, I had a long commute and an inefficient vehicle. 1 gallon of gas produces 20 lbs of CO2, I got about 18 mpg, and drove 25,000 miles, mostly due to commuting, so my driving added 12.5 tons of CO2 to the atmosphere.

Instead of making my computing more efficient, I changed jobs and vehicles. Now I drive 2.5 miles to work, at 30 mpg, fill up maybe once a month instead of twice a week, and am much happier for it! If I spent extra time to do more efficient programming, I could have decimated my server's power bill, and could have saved almost 1.9 tons of CO2, but by spending that time looking for a better job and better commute, which were far more extreme, I saved about 10 tons of CO2 instead.

[chrisballinger]

If you’re concerned about your carbon footprint and live within 2.5 miles of work, you might want to consider a bicycle instead! Regular cycling has made a profoundly positive impact to my life, and I would highly encourage you to explore that as an option.

[gonzo41]

I think you're right. I've been thinking for a while that the real future in electric vehicles is not Teslas or any EV to replace a car but Ebikes. Cheap, great range and you're getting some exercise and for every person on a bike. Other traffic flows better.

[Eric_WVGG]

I'll go a step further and say that this is in a way more wasteful. For the previous commute, driving was at least necessary. Driving 2.5 miles is like having a gas-powered robot fetch the morning newspaper.

[NegativeLatency]

Ebikes are good options too

[reaperducer]

If you’re concerned about your carbon footprint

If he was concerned about his carbon footprint, he would think producing 2 tons of CO2 a year through programming to be unimportant.

[codyb]

Are those numbers accurate? Am I literally releasing _two tons_ of CO2 into the atmosphere per year just by programming?

I mean, I'm certain I'm not hitting 500W just on my MBP, but with the TV, and Switch, and the rest.

2 tons? That's staggering. Would it really weight 4000 lbs??

That's absolutely a mind blowing moment for me and I'm probably going to spend some time in the near future figuring out how much carbon my relatively low footprint (no commute, bike lots, public transportation the rest, etc) lifestyle is producing.

I think I've got some old electricity bills, and of course it must depend on your power source.

Just wild to think about how many _tons_ of CO2 are now floating around because of just my lonesome if a computer can produce multiple tons a year.

[firebaze]

Still, atmospheric CO² is the food for plant life. We're overdoing the output of CO² by ~3 orders of magnitude, granted, but I'd guess 500W on top of basic needs should be in the ballpark of sustainability for a living entity on top of the food chain.

[zelon88]

While I'm not disagreeing with your math, your 500w server only draws 500w at load. Most of the time its probably drawing under 175w.

[richajak]

I have several computers at home, but most of the time I use my 65W laptop. I am afraid my 350W desktop computer will increase my electricity bill if I use it too much.