Amazon Still Lags Behind Apple, Google in Greenpeace Renewable Energy Report (greenpeace.org)

Amazon's cloud-computing unit says that one day it will rely solely on renewable power. But Greenpeace reports that a ramp-up in data-center construction in Virginia, where electricity comes mostly from coal and nuclear plants, makes that goal elusive. From the report: Apple, Google, Facebook, and newcomer Switch are taking some of the greatest strides towards 100% renewable energy, while companies such as Netflix, Amazon Web Services, and Samsung are lagging. The findings in Greenpeace USA's report outlines the energy footprints of large data center operators and nearly 70 of the most popular websites and applications. "Amazon continues to talk a good game on renewables but is keeping its customers in the dark on its energy decisions. This is concerning, particularly as Amazon expands into markets served by dirty energy," said Greenpeace USA Senior IT Analyst, Gary Cook. "Like Apple, Facebook, and Google, Netflix is one of the biggest drivers of the online world and has a critical say in how it is powered. Netflix must embrace the responsibility to make sure its growth is powered by renewables, not fossil fuels and it must show its leadership here," continued Cook.

Comments

Energy positive sources

[sjbe]

Look, a solar panel never makes in it's usable life the amount of energy it takes to produce

That hasn't been true for several years now. By 2020 it's estimated that solar panels will pay back all the energy they've ever taken to manufacture all of them.

the same with wind power.

Wrong again. Did you actually bother to research any of this? 20 Seconds on Google would have corrected your false assertions.

A coal plant returns the power it took to build with all parts in less than a month.

At the cost of dumping massive amounts of pollutants (including CO2) into the atmosphere for decades. When coal actually has to pay for the full energy (and financial) cost of mitigating the pollution it costs then you might have a fair comparison.

The internet disagrees with you

[Okian Warrior]

Look, a solar panel never makes in it's usable life the amount of energy it takes to produce, the same with wind power. Do the math with cost of production and construction. It NEVER works.

The internet disagrees with you. On both points.

Do you have links or other supporting information you can cite?

If not, consider changing your position.

Spreading these sorts of lies will only hurt our efforts to avoid a real and imminent crisis.

Greenpeace? Who cares?

[bradley13]

Greenpeace has lost all credibility. They are out for their own aggrandizement, and their primary goal is to perpetuate themselves. If they actually have any positive effect on environmental or conservation causes, it is entirely by accident.

Re:Greenpeace? Who cares?

[AmiMoJo]

Greenpeace do a lot of good work. Their policy papers on renewable energy are quite influential with governments, at least in Europe. There is a lot of good science and research that goes into them.

That's partly why people try to smear them so much. That and the strange myth that environmentalism is trying to make Americans poor.