EU legislation advancing ICT to green?

Abstract

The importance of information and communication technologies (ICTs) for society and economy has sharply increased during the last few decades. As a consequence, this sector's energy consumption and emissions have risen, too. However, ICT-enabled energy efficiency measures are expected to contribute to a reduction of carbon dioxide emissions by an astonishing 15 per cent. So Green IT is an essential precondition for the implementation of sustainable climate and energy policy targets. On the European Union level a set of Directives, Regulations and Communications affects the impact of ICTs on sustainability. This paper investigates the potentials and the effectivity of the present European Union legislation in this respect. © 2014 WIT Press.