HOW TO APPLY GREEN COMPUTING?

 

1.    Develop a sustainable green computing plan.

Ø  Discuss with your business leaders the elements that should be factored into such a plan, including organizational policies and checklists. Such a plan should include recycling policies, recommendations for disposal of used equipment, government guidelines and recommendations for purchasing green computer equipment. Green computing best practices and policies should cover power usage, reduction of paper consumption, as well as recommendations for new equipment and recycling old machines. Organizational policies should include communication and implementation.

2.    Recycle.

Ø  Discard used or unwanted electronic equipment in a convenient and environmentally responsible manner. Computers have toxin metals and pollutants that can emit harmful emissions into the environment. Never discard computers in a landfill. Recycle them instead through manufacturer programs such as HP's Planet Partners recycling service or recycling facilities in your community. Or donate still-working computers to a non-profit agency.

3.    Make environmentally sound purchase decisions.

Ø  Purchase Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tool registered products. EPEAT is a procurement tool promoted by the nonprofits Green Electronics Council to:

Ø  Help institutional purchasers evaluate, compare and select desktop computers, notebooks and monitors based on environmental attributes

Ø  Provide a clear, consistent set of performance criteria for the design of products

Ø  Recognize manufacturer efforts to reduce the environmental impact of products by reducing or eliminating environmentally sensitive materials, designing for longevity and reducing packaging materials

4.    Reduce Paper Consumption.

Ø  There are many easy, obvious ways to reduce paper consumption:     e-mail, electronic archiving, use the “track changes” feature in electronic documents, rather than redline corrections on paper. When you do print out documents, make sure to use both sides of the paper, recycle regularly, use smaller fonts and margins, and selectively print required pages.

5.    Conserve energy.

Ø  Turn off your computer when you know you won’t use it for an extended period of time. Turn on power management features during shorter periods of inactivity. Power management allows monitors and computers to enter low-power states when sitting idle. By simply hitting the keyboard or moving the mouse, the computer or monitors awakens from its low power sleep mode in seconds. Power management tactics can save energy and help protect the environment.