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deutschetelekom: Using ICT to Save up to 25 percent of all CO2 Emissions in Industry
Submitted on Dec 15, 2009.
Visit: http://www.un-gaid.org/Newsevents/tabid/864/mctl/ArticleView/ModuleId/2247/articleId/20639/Default.aspx
$0Up to 25 percent of all emissions of CO2 or equivalent hazardous substances (CO2e) – equivalent to 207 megatons (Mt) – can be saved in Germany by 2020 by the use of information and communications technology (ICT). This is the finding from the study entitled "SMART 2020 Deutschland." It identifies the ICT sector as the driving force on the road to sustained climate protection. This study was carried out jointly by Deutsche Telekom, Huawei, SAP, Siemens and The Boston Consulting Group. The business value of so-called SMART energy-saving concepts in the ICT sector is estimated at up to EUR 84 billion by 2020.$0 $0$0 $0 $0As one of the leading industrialized nations, Germany is among the world’s largest emitters of the pollutants that are responsible for global climate change. Although the information and communications technology sector accounts for only a small proportion of the emissions, it also offers a considerable climate protection opportunity for other branches of industry, such as transport and logistics and electricity generation. While ICT can make savings of 13 Mt in CO2e emissions in its own sector, potential reductions of 194 Mt can be achieved in other industries in 2020 by the general deployment of ICT.$0 $0$0 $0 $0The SMART concept used in the study stands for five factors that make this reduction possible: Standardization, Monitoring, Accountability, Rethinking and Transformation.$0 $0$0 $0 $0Direct contribution of ICT towards reducing CO2e emissions$0 $0 $0$0 $0 $0The ICT sector can make a direct contribution towards climate protection by reducing its own emissions. By producing 23 Mt of CO2e in 2007, the industry was responsible for around 2 percent of emissions in Germany. The constantly increasing importance of ICT in business and private households means that this figure will rise to around 3 percent by 2020. With the aid of various "green ICT" measures, the study forecasts that these emissions can be reduced by more than 50 percent – equivalent to 13 Mt of CO2e in the year 2020.$0 $0$0 $0 $0Need for action in five sectors – main potential for CO2e reduction in logistics and building management $0 $0 $0The study also identified five core areas in which ICT solutions can help to make significant reductions in emissions: building management (Smart Buildings), logistics (Smart Logistics), electricity generation (Smart Grid), industrial automation (Smart Motors) and dematerialization. The study finds that total annual CO2e emissions in these areas can be reduced by around 194 Mt over the next ten years.$0 $0$0 $0 $0With possible savings of up to 85.4 Mt of CO2e in the year 2020, the logistics sector, which also includes road transport, offers the greatest potential. Promising business models to reduce pollutants that damage the climate include the intelligent management of traffic flows and the introduction of an ICT-based urban toll. In building management, emissions of up to 41.8 Mt of CO2e can be saved, through climate management systems, for example. In industrial automation, the study estimates the potential reductions at 26.4 Mt CO2e, while it sees possible savings totaling 23.6 Mt of CO2e in the electricity industry. Finally, the dematerialization of products and services, e.g. limiting business travel by the use of videoconferences, offers potential reductions of 16.3 Mt of CO2e. In each case, the study indicates the theoretical maximum possible reduction. However, the development of the market alone produces a realistic potential of just 64 Mt of CO2e – a "gap" of around 130 Mt of CO2e.$0 $0$0 $0 $0Creating the conditions to reduce CO2e emissions$0 $0 $0To close this gap between the theoretical maximum potential reductions and the market-driven reality, business models are needed that significantly reduce CO2e emissions and are also commercially attractive. Policy-makers can also help to create suitable conditions to enable the widest possible access by consumers to new low-emission business concepts. The study identifies four ways in which business and policy-makers can work together to overcome the existing social, economic, legal and technical barriers to a nationwide implementation of these business concepts:$0 $0$0 $0 $0$0 $0 $0-Joint information campaigns to inform the public about the ways in which they can help to reduce emissions$0 $0$0 $0 $0-Public financial support to ICT companies for efforts to make business concepts more attractive to end-customers, e.g. by way of uniform technical standards$0 $0$0 $0 $0-Levies, such as special charges and taxes, to motivate end-customers and companies to deploy emission-reduced business concepts$0 $0$0 $0 $0-Legal standards for environmentally conscious behavior, e.g. in climate management systems for buildings$0 $0$0 $0 $0$0 $0 $0Although Germany is already playing a leading role in the worldwide battle against global warming, the study concludes that there is still untapped potential to make permanent reductions in greenhouse gases with the aid of the ICT sector. If these opportunities are to be exploited, both ICT companies and the government have to play their part.$0
Categories: M-banking, M-trade, M-finance
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