Environmentally friendly IT. Are you sure?

We tend to think of the world of computing and communications as fairly green. Sure, we know all those boxes and devices need plastics, certain rare or even hazardous metals, and plenty of water and energy to produce them and keep them going.

But picture a programmer sitting at a PC or someone telecommuting or many other uses of technology and they're a world away from 'dirty' manufacturing jobs before the last 30 years, or even plenty of industries as they operate now, directly involving all sorts of chemicals and resource depletion.

So it may have caught your eye that within the context of the Consumer Electronics Show, going on this week in Las Vegas, there have been protests against some IT vendors. Dell and Gateway were two companies with failing scores in an assessment by the Silicon Valley Toxics Coalition (SVTC), Michael Dell himself having to answer allegations from SVTC director Ted Smith in a seemingly routine post-keynote Q&A session (see: http://www.silicon.com/a57003). In the past, big names such as Intel and Sun have also felt the force of campaigning groups, many of them local to manufacturing plants around the world.

There are two key issues with 'green IT'. First, don't assume because large-scale water consumption and pollution, lack of recycling and the like aren't reported that there aren't problems. The industry media often neglect to cover such environmental and societal stories less it detract from some of the good (or bad) news technology and business stories out there.

The second point is that while a Dell or Intel comes in for criticism, they are making the right moves. Eliminating lead from chips when you are the world's largest chip-maker or recycling high numbers of used PCs when you are the clear PC leader are no small things.

Likewise the high street shops now taking in old mobile phone handsets - six months ago enquiries on this subject being shrugged off by ignorant salesman - is no small advance.

There is a place for pressure groups, especially when local operations, outside of any media glare, think they can get away with environmental disrespect, but let's also not lose sight of IT and communications as areas that can save our natural resources.