Ultimately, Green Hosts offer a sustainable solution to power Data Centres and promote eco-friendly practices. By understanding and choosing Green Hosting solutions, individuals and businesses can positively impact the environment while enjoying reliable and efficient hosting services.
The Evolution of Traditional Web Hosting to Green Energy
Web Hosting is an integral part of our online activities. However, in the past and (even) present, the environmental impact of traditional web hosting practices has raised concerns about sustainability.
Traditional web hosting relies heavily on energy-intensive data centres that contribute significantly to carbon emissions. These data centres require huge amounts of electricity to power and cool the servers. Using non-renewable energy sources further exacerbates the problem, leading to a substantial negative environmental impact.
To help minimise the environmental impact of our hosting, we’re proud to say we use 100% green energy in all our data centres. It involves utilising renewable energy sources, implementing energy-efficient technologies, and adopting eco-friendly practices to power and maintain our infrastructure.
How to assess efficiency benchmarks
You may have heard us mention PUE (Power Usage Effectiveness) scores before when talking about our data centres and our sustainability efforts. But what does it mean?
PUE is a metric used to measure the energy efficiency of a data centre. It’s calculated as the ratio of the total energy used by a Data Centre, to the energy used solely to power the servers. To break it down, the following sum calculates a PUE score:
PUE Score = Total energy used by a data centre ÷ Energy used by the servers
And so each data centre has a PUE score, with the target to be as low as possible to achieve positive environmental goals.
Key features of Green Hosting
Renewable Energy – By using renewable energy sources such as wind, solar, or hydroelectric power to run their data centres, it shifts from harmful fossil fuels to clean energy which significantly reduces the carbon footprint associated with hosting services.
Energy-Efficient Infrastructure – Investing in energy-efficient technologies and infrastructure, such as advanced cooling systems and other eco-friendly innovations to reduce energy consumption without compromising performance.
Carbon Offsetting – To go a step further, some Green Hosting providers invest in carbon offset programs. By supporting initiatives that reduce or even remove an equivalent amount of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, it compensates for the emissions generated by the data centre. It’s important to consider your own emissions to understand how much is necessary to offset before investing in carbon offset programs.
Environmental Accreditations – Once you’ve ticked off all of the above, many Green Hosting providers achieve and display certifications from recognised environmental organisations. Such as the Green Web Foundation’s ‘Green Web Check’ badge or ISO 14001 Environmental Management certification to further highlight a commitment to sustainable practices.
What makes ProStack’s Infrastructure Green?
Cold-aisle containment – Sealed corridors reduce the amount of chilled air that needs to be produced, saving energy.
Green credentials – Our UK data centres are ISO 14001 certified, providing an eco-friendly home for your servers to the highest standards!
Efficient UPSs – State-of-the-art UPSs with an operating efficiency of 95.5%. This means only 4.5% of energy is lost, significantly less than data centres with less efficient UPSs.
Industry beating PUE score – Like all our Data Centres, our UK Data Centre 2 runs on 100% renewable energy and has achieved a PUE (Power usage effectiveness) of 1.14, significantly lower than the global average of 1.57.
Why Green Web Hosting benefits you and your business!
By choosing a Green Host, businesses and individuals can significantly decrease their carbon footprint, contributing to the global effort to combat climate change.
If you partner up with a hosting provider (like us!) that aligns with your business values, you can promote positive brand awareness and eco-friendly practices. Make sure to check out our blog post on our partnership with the Green Web Foundation and how you can display your Green Web badge on your site!
As the demand for online services continues to grow, so does the environmental impact of the internet. It may seem like a small step, but it’s significant when looking towards a more sustainable digital future.
For further information on our pledge to sustainability, check our environmental efforts here – Sustainability – ProStack