ORGANISATIONS

The Green Grid is a non-profit, open industry consortium of end users, policy makers, technology providers, facility architects and utility companies collaborating to improve the resource efficiency of data centres and business computing ecosystems. www.thegreengrid.org

Computer Aid International is a charity that aims to reduce poverty through practical ICT solutions, providing refurbished computers and laptops for reuse in education, health, agriculture and not-for-profit organisations in developing countries. www.computeraid.org

ASHRAE produce the environmental specification that IT equipment vendors use as their warranty guidelines, so this can have a big impact on how efficiently organisations operate their equipment. www.ashrae.org

The Carbon Trust is a not-for-profit company providing support to help business and the public sector to cut carbon emissions, save energy and commercialise low-carbon technologies. www.carbontrust.co.uk

The Committee on Climate Change (CCC) is an independent body established under the Climate Change Act (2008), advising the UK Government on setting and meeting carbon budgets and on preparing for the impacts of climate change. www.theccc.org.uk

Destination Green IT (DGIT) is a community and information channel for IT users and computer hardware manufacturers, suppliers and distributors to learn, debate, and consider green technologies and solutions. www.destinationgreenit.com

The BCS Green IT Specialist Group aims to promote green computing and address green issues and the adoption of green practices for information and communication technologies and services across their life cycle, particularly for end users and home users. www.bcs.org/category/10547

The BCS Data Centre Specialist Group aims to provide a forum for open and honest discussion, information sharing and evaluation of data centre-related issues and technologies. http://dcsg.bcs.org/

Department of Business, Innovation and Skills:www.bis.gov.uk/weee

Valpak: www.valpak.co.uk/dts

Environment Agency: www.environment-agency.gov.uk

ADVICE AND GUIDELINES

Waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE): Since February 2003 the WEEE Directive has become a requirement across the European Community. The Directive imposes the responsibility of the disposal of electrical and electronic equipment on the originating manufacturer. The UK didn’t enshrine the Directive into law until 2007. For household equipment that means you can request the manufacturer to dispose of the equipment they made free of charge to you and they must then either dispose of it in an ecologically friendly manner or reuse, refurbish or recycle it. In the UK some retailers offer a one-for-one in-store take-back facility, others will direct you to distributor take-back schemes or local designated collection facilities. None of these will cost you anything as a consumer. For business users the system is a little more complicated, and it’s in flux, so it’s best to check out the Environment Agency’s latest guidance because you may find your business is required to follow the WEEE Directive when disposing of electronic equipment. Download their fact-sheet at: www.environment-agency.gov.uk/business/topics/waste/32098.aspx

EC Code of Conduct on data centres: Managed by Paolo Bertoldi from the European Commission’s Joint Research Centre in Ispra, Italy, the European Code of Conduct on Data Centres has gained international acclaim for being the most sensible and comprehensive guide to data centre best practice. The code’s aim is to increase the energy efficiency of data centres and reduce waste and inefficiencies at all stages of a data centre life cycle. It covers almost everything during the data centre’s life that results in the consumption of energy. However it does not look at embodied energy at this stage.

For further details about the code and information on becoming a participant or endorser of the scheme see: http://re.jrc.ec.europa.eu/energyefficiency/html/standby_initiative_data_centers.htm

RoHS: RoHS stands for the Restriction of the Use of Certain Hazardous Substances in Electric and Electronic Equipment. The UK RoHS Regulations came into force in 2006. They ban the placing on the EU market of new electrical and electronic equipment containing more than agreed levels of a number of metals and substances, see www.bis.gov.uk/nmo/enforcement/rohs-home

CEEDA (Certified Energy Efficiency Data Centre Award): This recognises and rewards best practice in data centre energy efficiency. www.ceeda-award.org

GREEN OPINION AND RESOURCES

BCS Green IT Specialist Group wikispace: http://bcs-green-it.wikispaces.com/Home

BCS Video Debates: IT policies and your green credentials: www.bcs.org/content/conWebDoc/23601

Kate Craig-Wood’s blog on energy-efficient IT: www.katescomment.com

Greenbang blog: www.greenbang.com

Green IT magazine: www.greenitmagazine.com

Green IT in Techworld: www.techworld.com/green-it