E-mail pollution is underestimated

WWF

Data centers, the backbone of web hosting, are real energy consumers, often powered by non-renewable sources.

This high energy expenditure comes from several sources:

• Data centers account for 1.5% of global energy consumption. But theInternational Energy Agency (IEA ) warns that this share could rise to 10% by 2030 if no significant action is taken.
• The networks needed to transfer data, powered by energy-hungry infrastructures.
• User terminals, such as smartphones and computers, also use electricity.

This is an alarming finding, since the production of terminals alone accounts for between 65% and 90% of the carbon footprint of the digital sector in France. These are the findings of a joint report byArcep andADEME, commissioned by the French Ministry of Ecological Transition and the Ministry of the Economy, Finance and Economic Recovery.

Consequently, reducing the energy impact of digital technology means taking action right from the design and manufacturing phase, and rethinking our everyday uses.

Where does digital technology's carbon footprint come from?

While the use of our digital tools consumesenergy, it is above all their manufacture that weighs most heavily in the overall carbon footprint:

• Around 60% of CO₂ emissions come from manufacturing, compared with 40% from use

The production of a single terminal requires considerable resources, particularly rare metals. Every year, millions of tons of natural resources are extracted to produce smartphones, computers and tablets, using energy-intensive industrial processes.

A striking example:

• Manufacturing a 2 kg computer requires 800 kg of raw materials and 1.5 tons of water.
• It generates 183 kg of CO₂e, whereas the use of this computer represents just 7.6 kg of CO₂e.

Source: ADEME

It is therefore necessary to extend the lifespan of equipment to contribute to a sustainable economy.

To help you take concrete action, we have developed Decarbo'Target®. This Decarbo'Solution® service enables you to analyze the most emissive workstations. It identifies the most emissive flows, proposes targeted reduction plans, and measures the environmental performance of actions taken.

Challenges for organizations: reducing impact, improving CSR coherence

Faced with thegrowing impact of digital technology on the environment, companies can no longer ignore the impact of their digital practices. While the most emissive items are generally known (mobility, energy, purchasing), digital practices - often invisible - account for a significant share. Against this backdrop, organizations need to question the coherence of their CSR approach and take concrete action to reduce their environmental footprint.

Why should organizations take action?

"According to Le Monde Informatique, "Email is the number one business communication tool. It structures the bulk of exchanges with customers, partners and suppliers.

Yet this practice is still too rarely taken into account in GHG assessments. And yet, by integrating this impact:

✅ Improving transparency

Including e-mail and data pollution in the carbon footprint gives a more accurate and comprehensive picture of the organization'scarbon footprint.

✅ Meeting the growing expectations of stakeholders

Today, customers, employees and investors increasingly expect consistency between a company's environmental commitments and the reality of its digital practices.

✅ Building credibility with investors

Extra-financial analysts and investment funds are increasingly attentive to ESG criteria. Mastering the use of digital tools has become a true indicator of CSR maturity.

✅ Concretely reducing a structure's carbon footprint

Acting on digital practices (reducing e-mail volumes, optimizing storage practices, controlling the sending of heavy attachments ) offers a quick and effective lever for reducingecological impact.

Digital technology is now at the heart of CSR strategies, and mastering it has become a key evaluation criterion.

It's with this in mind that Decarbo'Supply®, one of the pillars of the Decarbo'Solution®, supports organizations in precisely integrating thecarbon impact of their digital uses - e-mail, data, servers - into their CSR strategy. The tool makes it possible to promote the most sober infrastructures, involve suppliers and IT service providers, and monitor the effective reduction of associated emissions.

Measurable gains

Sending and managing our e-mails has a significant ecological impact. Fortunately, adopting good practices can significantly reduce this footprint.

Here are some concrete steps you can take to make your digital communications more sustainable:

1. Optimize your e-mail delivery

• Use links for large files
• Reduce the size of attachments
• Simplify your automatic signatures

According toADEME, multiplying the number of recipients of an e-mail by 10 means multiplying its impact by 4.

2. Manage your inboxes and outboxes

• Target your recipients
• Regularly delete old e-mails and attachments

What 's more, the use of file-sharing services (local server, cloud, or dedicated sharing boxes) considerably reduces data "travel" and storage. Data can travel up to 15,000 km before reaching its destination.

By adopting these habits, you are actively helping to reduce the carbon footprint of digital technology.

Training and raising team awareness

Employees need to understand that every e-mail sent or kept, every attachment stored unnecessarily, has a carbon impact.

It is essential to set up training courses dedicated to digital sobriety, to raise awareness of best practices and to integrate these issues into CSR training courses.

Yet employees themselves are ready to get more involved. According to ADEME, 68% of employees want to go further and be trained in sustainability issues.

Training thus becomes a strategic lever for :

• Giving meaning to new sustainable practices
• Creating a shared culture of ethical and responsible communication
• Empower all business lines: HR, marketing, digital, purchasing, events...
• Facilitate implementation of the low-carbon approach at all levels of the company

Every e-mail sent and every file stored unnecessarily consumesenergy and contributes to global warming. With customers, investors and employees increasingly demanding CSR consistency, it is becoming essential for organizations to control this invisible environmental impact.

Thanks to Decarbo'Solution® - and in particular its Decarbo'Target® and Decarbo'Supply® modules - organizations have an operational framework for :

1. Measure the real footprint of their digital uses,
2. Involve teams and suppliers in digital sobriety,
3. Optimize e-mail and data management practices,
4. Effectively manage your decarbonization trajectory.

Every e-mail counts. Every controlled digital action becomes a powerful lever for accelerating the company's environmental transition.