"The reality on the ground today is that while Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft, and Google all claim to be leading the charge toward a 'net-zero' future, they are effectively marking their own homework."
"Most cloud sustainability dashboards rely on the former. This allows a provider to claim a data centre is '100% renewable' because they bought wind power credits from a project three states away, even if the servers in question are currently being powered by a local grid burning coal."
"Google has pushed back against this with its '24/7 Carbon-Free Energy' (CFE) approach that aims to match every hour of demand with local, clean supply."
"For an IT leader this makes drawing direct comparisons impossible."
The narrative that public cloud services are environmentally superior is being challenged as major providers like AWS, Microsoft, and Google use varying metrics for sustainability. The shift in focus for IT leaders is now on justifying the environmental impact of workloads. The reliance on 'market-based' reporting allows providers to claim renewable energy usage without local accountability. Google’s '24/7 Carbon-Free Energy' and Microsoft's 'Community-First' approach aim for more transparency, while AWS continues to use unbundled Renewable Energy Credits, complicating comparisons for enterprises.
Read at ComputerWeekly.com
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