Gone are those days when the only purpose of a phone was to make calls. In the age of the internet, your phone(Smartphone) is not just you calling device but your personal computer, your camera as well as your personal entertainment system on the go.
But have you ever wondered what kind of impact our friendly looking handheld device has on the environment?
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Is Your Smartphone Hurting the Environment?
Researchers have found that smartphones and data centers are damaging to the environment and will be one of the biggest contributors in the tech sector in terms of carbon emissions by the year 2040.
Scientists experimented by calculating the carbon footprint of devices such as cellphones, laptops, tablets, and desktops as well as data from centers and communication networks (collectively known as information and communication technology). The scientists concluded that, of all the devices, cellphones are the biggest contributors to the global carbon footprint.
What is carbon footprint?
Carbon footprint is the amount of greenhouse gases- mostly carbon dioxide unleshed into the atmosphere as a result of a particular human activity.
But How?
It is difficult to accept the fact that our innocent looking smartphones can be a part of such a pressing issue. So, how exactly is our smartphone responsible?
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While our smartphones consume very little energy to operate but around 85% of their emissions impact comes from the production process. Researchers have found that the chips and the motherboard of our phones require a lot of energy to be produced as they consist of precious metals mined at a high cost.
Apart from that, rapid advancement in technology and the constant need to own a smartphone with the latest technologies has resulted in a short shelf life causing an extraordinary amount of e-waste.
The Role of Data Centers
message we share, every phone call we make, there is a data center making this possible.
These data centers use several complex devices such as servers, switches, storage systems, firewalls, etc. These resources contribute to e-waste. Apart from that, data centers also require 24×7 electricity often generated by fossil fuels, contributing to carbon emissions as well.
With the rapid increase in the number of smartphone users around the world, the number of communication centers is also increasing proportionately. According to Dr. Lotfi Belkhir from McMaster University, ICTs (Information and Communication Technologies) currently contribute to a 1.5% total global footprint and is expected to contribute about 14% of the total global carbon footprint by 2040. This projection is alarming as it is almost half the carbon footprint from the global transportation sector worldwide.
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In Conclusion
It is hard to see the real impact our smartphones have on the environment and to realize the actual cost our environment pays for every text or call we make. But at the same time, smartphones have become such an integral part of our lives that it is almost impossible to survive without it in today’s day and age. There is hardly any solution or awareness about this issue as of now. So, we need to spread the word and work towards finding a more eco-friendly solution for connecting and communicating around the globe. At the same time, we need to work towards spending more quality time with our friends and family in person. It not only helps us improve our relationship but also helps protect the environment.
We understand that it is hard to meet and interact with people at a time when there is an ongoing virus pandemic, and everyone needs to practice social distancing but, at the same time, most of us are at our home with our family. We can use this time to spend more quality with them as it will not only help us improve our bond but also reduce time spent on phones and other devices, thus reducing their effect on the environment.
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