Estimates of potential reductions in greenhouse gasses vary from 1 billion tons over 10 years to almost 8 billion metric tons in 2020.
According to a study funded by both Microsoft and Intel, the carbon differential is 40 percent in favor of downloading music, even if the consumer then burns it onto a CD and puts it in a CD case.
If the downloaded music is not burned onto a CD, the differential rises to 80 percent.
According to a study funded by both Microsoft and Intel and authored by two academics at Carnegie Mellon University and a third affiliated with Stanford University, buying a music album digitally reduces carbon dioxide emissions by 40 to 80 percent relative to a “best-case” CD-purchasing scenario.
[HSBC] estimates for every 2,000 miles of personal air travel, one ton of carbon dioxide is emitted.
Broadband networks can enable municipalities to monitor traffic patterns
and adjust traffic signals to minimize traffic congestion, thereby reducing pollutants even further.
Since the paper industry uses the most energy, outside of the petroleum and chemical industries, the reduction has spared 2.5 million tons of solid wastes, saved 67 million BTUs of energy and 24.6 million gallons of polluted water.
In terms of carbon emissions, the reduction in circulation has lead to 7.9 million tons less of greenhouse gases.” (p. 34)
There appears to be a negative correlation between Internet and energy use – namely, as the Internet has grown, energy use and carbon emissions have declined.
As workers teleconference, business travel is reduced, sparing carbon and other emissions as well. (p. 2)