Data centres account for about 0.3% of US emissions (less in most countries). So unless you can cut at least 200 times more co2 in other places as well, why bother?
It might be difficult to measure a single such cut, but a few hundred could be noticeable. https://arstechnica.com/science/2020/07/manage-your-expectat...
This is what no one seems to get. The change we want is not small, we don't actually care about about delaying this a year or two. It's avert disaster or don't.
We cant solve this problem one tonne at a time. We either all get together and solve it. Or we don't solve it at all.
Oh wait, no, emissions went up again while we've been talking and getting this ready. So we actually need one billion and three more solutions to get to the same place the original billion would have got is to.
This is the reality of it situation.
Sorry to be so bleak. But I think people (a) think we're making progress, and by any actual measure we are not and (b) think that piecemeal, you-do-you solutions will work, when they haven't for the last 50+ years.
That's what we've done for 40 years. It's failed every single year. It's failed disastrously badly.
We need accept this has failed in order to change to something that might work. At this point, even doing nothing would be better, at least it would save time and be honest.
There was this guy who debated with me online about using solar panels because 'they are not efficient enough' and another one who debated planting trees.
It is a step by step process. We will not magically cure up the ecology in one day in one swoosh. It'll take small efforts from various aspects.
We're definitely not moving fast enough, but we're still moving pretty fast on the economic proposition of renewables and electrified transportation alone.
Right now, We're not just emitting co2, we're emitting more this year than last year.
And the amount more is rising as well.
Any actual measure of co2E emissions shows this problem is bad, its getting worse and its getting worse faster over time.
But in this same system we are nearing a tipping point where renewables are the better choice for the bottom line. And that is progress.
We will see.
Japan's population is expected to be half. Spain and others are going in the same way, China and India are expected to reduce but not by half.
Let's hope that we keep working on this problem.
As EVs rise, I expect this to be a positive turnout. it doesn't matter that 1 EV save a lot of CO2, buses and planes are becoming electric. The more electrification we do, the more solar and wind we use, the better.
India has few hundred MW solar panel project. Other countries are also planning them, right? So let's hope that they do work in the intended way..
And a secret lag, one that no scientist, economist, politician or other expert has predicted or discovered. One effecting the whole globe.
And that huge lag cause would now need to suddenly stop causing lag (otherwise we're fucked).
And if you have all these factors, what would that mean? It would mean I was right, no point in further action, global warming was fixed around 1990 and no one noticed because of the lag!
A good analysis should look like this: https://www.withouthotair.com/
We have a huge problem at the moment where people think they're achieving something by personally cutting their co2 emissions by a few kg per year. Global emissions continue to rise. So they're not achieving anything.
Before we can achieve something, we have to get people to realise they are not already solving the issue.
> people think they're achieving something by personally cutting their co2 emissions by a few kg per year.
If they reduce their emissions a bit and think that's enough - well, that's bad. If they realise it wasn't enough and more needs to be done - well, that's better than nothing. At least it's a step in the right direction.
I agree with you that global emissions just stubbornly continue to rise. Whatever we do to cut emissions just doesn't seem to matter somehow. And it's very frustrating. Yet, I think, just leaning back and doing nothing is not a solution.
Were in "1000 spoons when all you need is a knife" and we're rapidly searching for more spoons and celebrating spoon production.
They're actually worse than useless. People mistake more options for action. And people spend more time arguing over which sub solutions to implimented while implimenting nothing.
I used to think that. Now I believe that my behavior influences other people’s behavior, and that when people make these individual behavior changes they are precursors to those individuals also doing things like getting more politically involved with environmental causes, etc.
Small changes preclude bigger ones when it comes to human behavior (I think?).
Basically the individual actions can help shift social norms and that is important, is what I now believe.
Or: why should I do my part when everyone's selfish?