Transcript 48 Green Facts From PC Magazine http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2276270,00.asp In 2007, companies with an enviro tech focus received $3.95 billion in venture funding, a 38 percent increase.

48 Green Facts
From PC Magazine
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2276270,00.asp
In 2007, companies with an enviro
tech focus received $3.95 billion
in venture funding, a 38 percent
increase over 2006.
The "phantom load"—electricity
consumed by "switched-off"
appliances like TVs, radios, the
microwaves—can add $200 a
year to your bill.
Switched-off devices account for
40 percent of the energy
consumed by electronics in an
average home.
The U.S. government could save
$330 million over a four-year
period if its data centers complied
with Energy Star Version 4.0.
Extra heat generated by
computers means more heat in
the office, which translates to
more use of air conditioning.
Companies that sign for the
WWF's Climate Savers
Computing Initiative could reduce
CO2 pollution by 10 million tons
annually by 2010.
At the 2008 CES, Fujitsu showed
a laptop PC whose outside plastic
shell is 50 percent vegetablebased polymer alloy.
Creation of a desktop PC usually
requires ten times the PC's weight
in fossil fuels and chemicals, most
of them toxic.
Fifteen billion batteries are made
and sold across the globe every
year.
If you're not sure where to donate
out-of-use electronics,
Recycles.Org can match you up
with nonprofit agencies that use
old equipment.
By 2011, more than 400 million
PCs will have been purchased as
replacements for current home
and office computers.
Typical U.S. cell-phone users
replace their phones every year
and a half.
130 million cell phones each year
go into retirement.
Recycling 100 million phones
would recover 3.4 metric tons of
gold— gold that would not have to
be mined.
PCs contain gold too: 1.2 tons of
PC scrap electronics has more
than can be extracted from 17
tons of gold ore.
Only 15 percent of Americans are
aware that local recyclers will take
old electronics and computers.
Each year, the world generates 20
million to 50 million metric tons of
e-waste, according to United
Nations Environmental
Programme.
E-waste makes up 2 percent of
solid waste in the U.S. and is the
fastest-growing segment of U.S.
garbage.
Flaws in Windows XP 's sleep
mode and Microsoft's choice of
"High Performance" as the default
performance option may have
added $5 billion to power bills
annually worldwide.
NASA, the Department of
Defense, and the General
Services Administration are all
now committed to buying only
EPEAT-certified computers.
Manufacturing one desktop and
one monitor requires: 530 pounds
of fossil fuel, 58 pounds of
chemicals, and 1.5 tons of water.
Twelve percent (25 million) of
Americans would pay extra for
greener electronics. On the other
hand, 41 percent (90 million) are
not willing to pay extra.
Wii is the power-saving leader of
game consoles, consuming only
18.4 watts. Compare the hogs:
Xbox (186W), PS3 (199W), and a
PC (209W at peak usage).
While old CRT monitors use more
energy to show white than black,
LCDs spend slightly more energy
to show black than white.
Don't recycle, Freecycle: There
are 4,226 Freecycle.org online
groups helping more than four
million users give away "junk" to
others who can use it.
The average office drone uses up
10,000 sheets of paper—about a
whole tree's worth of wood pulp—
per year.
2.05 million tons of electronics
were put out as garbage in the
U.S. in 2005. Only about 18
percent of that was recycled.
The U.S scraps about 400 million
pieces of consumer electronics
equipment, e-waste, per year. It's
the fastest-growing waste stream.
If you buy a new system, Apple
and Dell will recycle your old
computer, regardless of
manufacturer.
Search EPEAT.net's Product
Registry to find computers and
monitors that are certified green.
There's 4 to 8 pounds of toxic lead
in all CRT TVs and monitors. Flatpanels have less lead but more
mercury.
It's estimated that as much as 80
percent of U.S. e-waste is
shipped overseas or to Mexico to
be dismantled in unsafe working
conditions.
As much as 50 percent of the
power most desktop computers
use is wasted as heat jettisoned
by fans on the power supply.
A survey by Staples in November
2007 indicated that only 23
percent of U.S. residents recycle
electronics. Between 2000 and
2007, as many as 500 million
computers became obsolete.
To create just 1 kilogram of
consumer goods, manufacturers
on average create 5 kilograms of
waste.
Shopping for a new HDTV?
Plasma TVs consume far more
energy than LCDs, and they
waste it as heat energy.
As much as 40 percent of the
energy used by electronics in a
home is consumed when devices
are switched off.
Shopping for a surge protector?
Buy one of reasonable capacity.
The bigger it is the more energy it
consumes.
Bamboo is the most sustainable
of all materials. Look for laptops
encased in it, such as the ASUS
Ecobook.
By 2001, e-waste already
accounted for 70 percent of the
heavy metals and 40 percent of
the lead in U.S. landfills.
Some LCDs are built using plastic
rather than glass, which is far
easier to recycle.
If all commuters worked from
home just one day a week, we
could save 5.85 billion gallons of
oil each year.
If you listen to your CD player 2
hours a day, you can save $200 a
year by switching to rechargeable
batteries.
The energy saved by recycling
one plastic bottle will power a
computer for 25 minutes.
Take an HP, Lexmark, or Dell
printer cartridge to Staples for
recycling and you will get a $3
coupon for ink or toner.
Energy Star 4.0 is quite stringent,
demanding highly efficient power
supplies and very-low-power idle
modes.
Unplug! Each year in the U.S.,
electronic devices that are turned
off but not unplugged use
electricity worth $3 billion.
IT asset recovery (selling
refurbished PCs)—is now a $6
billion–a-year business.