Facebook, like any other company utilizing the web, or the “cloud,” is an energy user.  According to an official with the utility PG&E, “if the data 'cloud' was a country, it would have the fifth highest electric load in the world.”

This makes me wonder about how much our titans of the web are doing to promote clean energy.  We know that Google is putting a lot of resources into developing the infrastructure for offshore wind off the Maryland coast, while also buying clean energy for many of its facilities.  Apple says some of its data centers are powered by clean energy.  Data centers appear to be a major driver in increased electricity usage.  A senior official with the Oregon Public Utilities Commission calls data centers, “the factories of the 21^st century.”

Facebook has proven to be a true tech and communications innovator, changing the very way that our society interacts and connects.  After two years of intensive lobbying efforts by Greenpeace's "Unfriend Coal" campaign, Facebook did commit to power its operations, including its data centers, using clean and renewable energy. 

Bottom line – while Facebook’s IPO is currently the focus of Wall Street, another focus should be on what Facebook, along with other emerging web titans, are doing to power their operations and the web with clean, renewable electricity.  Hopefully Facebook can rise to become an aspirational industry leader in the green realm as well. 

*