Authors: Rizki Faisal Ali and M. Aditya Dwi Sukmara*

In this digital era, many people use internet and it could produce big data, but that could give big impact  for  environment.  At  the  start,  Tech  Company make  digital  product  for  making  the information, interaction, and mobility are more efficient, but presently they try how to make digital product could be friendly for environment. One of the most big tech company in the world is Google, in US they have around 274, 49 million visitors for using Google and can’t imagine if we unite the data of Google’s user in entire world(Bianchi 2023).

Although the data center has the central role in digital, but it shows with environment’s effect. For maintaining the server of data center run 24/7 which needs many resources such many coolers and fossil energy that could produce many carbons which give negative effect to environment. In addition, the demand of business and society for using internet still increase, moreover in Covid-19 and after. According Professor John Naughton of the British Open University, data center could consume 50% energy (neuCentrIX 2022). That is divided for 34% personally use and 16% from industry which produce that digital product. Furthermore, the innovation of digital keep increase like they try to connect many devices that could be united. When the digital is more advance, they need more energies to produce data. As we know tech company now is trying to make artificial intelligence (AI), blockchain, and cloud which could be part of life because those are really advance digital, they could consume huge energies (Zabeu 2022).

In this case, European Union has made the act that the data center need to make the operation to become friendly to environment for 2030. Moreover, The data center have the chance that could separate to the entire world like in US such  Amazon Web Services, Google, Equinix, and CyrusOne (Green Revolution Cooling 2022). Because their operation could affect on climate change which could get media attention make them to use renewable energy and more efficient cooling systems because at 2021, the demand of their digital product would have more users. In the future, the technology will be more advance, thus it will give more negative impact on the environment, although it will give benefit to the society to run business and increase economy.

There was a big case from Google’s data center which impact to the environment. At August 2019, Google plan to build monster data center in Mesa which was part of Arizona Municipal Water Users Association member, but talking about using water for data center was not included, even though it will really give big impact to the environment since it will have needed around 1 million water gallons per day for cooling the server of data center and if the project was approved, it will have consumed around 4 million water gallons per day (Sattiraju 2020). In addition, People around that area consumed 120 million gallons everyday, how wasteful we consume waste with the existence of Google’s data center.

Recently Google is trying to build more server data center in entire region United States for running their services like online searches, web advertising and cloud services. This company use and build many building for putting their servers, but they often put the server in dry area which people try so hard to produce water from that land. Google claimed that their operation was friendly, but there were some data of their guilty which didn’t show to the public. According to Gary Cook, global climate campaigns director at Stand earth, an environmental advocacy group, “Data center now is spreading in many regions, but we need to stop them for using important resources which many people need it”(Sattiraju 2020).

Why the data of their guilties don’t show, they tell that their data is secret of trade and public doesn’t need to know, even they try to convince government to cover it. But sometimes this data show since many people from community are struggling so hard for their rights in law competition (Sattiraju 2020). But Google doesn’t just stay quiet, they are trying so hard to reduce the impact of their technology to environment with many ways since many people really need their services. When they try to reduce water for their operation, but they will use another resources like fossil energy, but it needs more budget, thus that’s why they use water because cheap.

This is just case from Google, how about another tech company like Microsoft and Meta. They also build the server of data center in dry land like Arizona because there are many demand of business and society but the capacity of water reach the limit. Meta could consume water 5 million cubic meters which is almost same 1,33 billion water gallons at 2021 (Boitnott 2023). Although they are trying to make innovation for reducing their impact but we need to be concerned about the resources since their operations must be leave the scar for the environment and they run the company from a long time ago. That’s why the company need to think deeply for the environment since it will give impact also to society, they need to be responsible for what they did, although we really need their service nowadays, but we need to think about the future, don’t give more burdens to people in the future because of our greed.

Green data center shows as the solution, this could reduce the impact of digital technology to environment, but we need to think also about society about building this solution, although it’s good for environment. In Netherland, Meta and Microsoft try to build data center by using renewable energy from wind turbines, but it get contradictive from citizen. Government from Netherland promise to citizen that the wind turbines will support the electricity, but it even help more the company because they need more renewable energy. The wind turbines are built near citizen and it could consume two more times renewable energy (Jansen 2022). The wind turbines could produce the pollution of voice, light, and horizon because need many wind turbines (Jansen 2022). Even though that solution has been promised for citizen. Thus, this needs to be considered for building green data center.

The benefit of green data center is totally brilliant like it will not produce carbon, reduce using energy, cost saving, and still many, but there are many things also which need to be considered because we can’t repeat the problem when we use many energies for data center. Tech company will need many renewable energy because their data center and their users still increase, so they will use huge land which also would intrude the citizen or animal and plant ecosystems, but this also will give benefit to society or another government for using renewable energy as a promotion (Fletcher 2022). At the first for society, people will be curious why only company who use renewable energy because the cost is not expensive and efficient, so the company and government need to involve whatever the condition and don’t let green data center intrude the activity of society. The second, they will be using zoo, thus the way they build need to be green, don’t let destroy the zoo. The last, when this solution is success, the society need enjoy this, but don’t let society and company use same renewable energy since it will make conflict.

About what company did to environment, don’t let we forget about that, we need to monitor about their history until now and track the data. Don’t let because they make great solution, we forget about their mistake in the past. This solution is still on process, we hope when it’s success, we could enjoy it because sometimes the party who really most enjoy the solutions is party who has big power and influence, but we as ordinary just watch and never enjoy it.

*M. Aditya Dwi Sukmara, Student in Master International Relations Universitas Gadjah Mada.