Digital Pollution

Digital pollution is a crucial aspect of digital ecology. It is the main problem against which digital ecology is fighting. Digital pollution refers to the negative impact of digital technology and electronic waste on the environment and human health. This can include emissions from electronic devices, toxic chemicals in electronic waste, and the proliferation of e-waste in landfills.

Technology users contribute to digital pollution on a daily basis, which include:

• Data clouds and servers - keeping many data on clouds and servers and transferring them contribute to air pollution through the energy used to power and cool these data centers and sending the data. The energy consumption of data centers results in emissions of greenhouse gases, such as harmful carbon dioxide.^[7] The energy is generated by power plants, which often burn fossil fuels such as coal, oil, and natural gas, releasing harmful pollutants into the air. In addition, the air conditioning systems used to cool the servers also consume a significant amount of energy and release heat into the environment. This is primarily influenced by large databases, but people's day-to-day activities are also not insignificant. An example of this would be storing and accessing emails.^[8] An average year of emailing emits about 136 kilograms of CO₂. One inbox consumes enough energy to run a hot shower for about 4 minutes, which is equal to illuminating 40 lightbulbs for an hour and equal to pollution by driving a car 212 metres.^[9] Addictionally, data centers consume large amounts of energy to power and cool the servers that store and process spam email data, resulting in emissions of greenhouse gases and other pollutants.^[10]
• Production of electronic devices - has a detrimental effect on the environment for several reasons: increasing the demand for raw materials, rare earth minerals, energy, water usage, and other resources, and contribute to environmental degradation through the associated pollution and waste.^[11] Manufacturing is the most polluting phase. It accounts for up to 80% of a device's carbon footprint during its lifetime. Buying new equipment every six years rather than every four reduces carbon dioxide production by 190 kg.
• Energy-inefficient electronics - they consume more electricity, which in turn requires more energy to be generated, often from power plants that burn fossil fuels. Additionally, inefficient electronics also generate more heat, which requires more energy for cooling, further increasing the total energy consumption and associated emissions. When these electronic devices reach the end of their lifespan and are disposed of, they can also become electronic waste, which can release toxic chemicals into the environment.^[12]
• Unnecessary charging of electronic devices - can contribute to air pollution through the increased energy consumption. Unnecessary charging of devices, such as smartphones or laptops, increases the overall energy demand and contributes to emissions from power plants.^[13] Charging smartphones generates more carbon dioxide than charging laptops.
• Electronic waste - electronic devices eventually reach the end of their lifespan and become waste. The improper disposal of electronic waste release toxic chemicals into the environment, contaminating soil and water, and harming wildlife.^[14]