The environmental cost of the Web
Epistemic status: Mostly placeholder. Deserves a lot more time and attention. Has been sitting at the back of my head for a while.
The Internet emits CO₂ – and more than you might think. Storing data on servers, processing them, answering users’ requests, having the infrastructure required to transfer data, antennas, repeaters, routers, signal amplifiers, CDNs, modems, all the way to the energy used by the final device to view the page. And more: there is also the cost of the equipment itself, and of its constant renewal in the race for technological advancement, encouraged by the increased will to function in the digital world.
Solar Web Design goes over some of the techniques used for LOW←TECH MAGAZINE.
Web development considerations should go beyond performance. Although a performant website will be a more environmentally friendly website, maybe that’s not enough?