Many Choices for Green Web Hosting
I’ve used EcoSky, a Portland-based green web hosting company for quite some time, and I’ve been very happy with their services. A recent Sustainable IT article on Greenest Host got me thinking about green web hosting in general.
What is a green web hosting company?
Generally, it is a company that is at least using some form of renewable energy to power their web and mail servers. Some companies may generate that renewable power themselves using solar panels, such as California based Greenest Host, or wind power. Other companies may buy their renewable power from the utilities. Some companies may buy conventional electric power, but then use purchase carbon credits to advertise themselves as carbon neutral. A review of the green web hosting companies I could find through Google found most to be committed to 100% renewable power, with solar and solar/wind combinations to be most common.
What kind of green hosting company do I choose?
While any renewable power web hosting company is going to be greener than the alternate, those companies that have committed to their own on-site renewable power generation, such as solar or wind, are making a long term commitment to green power. They’ve already made the investment in power generation, and there’s little incentive for them to switch to non-renewable power. I think these companies are the best choice, because they are unlikely to revert back to conventional non-renewable power simply to save money or because of a change in ownership. That said, any green hosting company is still a great choice.
A secondary benefit of green web hosting companies is to drive improvements in the energy efficient of web servers. Energy efficiency is of importance to all IT data centers, including web hosting companies, as electricity to power servers and provide cooling is one of their primary operational expenses. Virtually every large IT supplier is now creating energy efficient servers to help meet this demand. Traditional computers use anywhere from 60 to 120 watts (way more for gaming machines), but a computer built to optimize energy efficiency will consume less than 25 watts. Green web hosting companies, because of the higher cost of their electrical power, have even more incentive to find innovative ways to save power.
Green Web Hosting Resources:
Directory of Green Web Hosting Companies
EcoSky, true solar powered web hosting
AISO, true solar powered web hosting
Greenest Host, true solar powered web hosting
Smooshy Lab, 100% solar powered,
Ecological Hosting
Eco Web Design, UK based Solar Powered Web Hosting
Dream Host, carbon neutral web hosting
Solar Load by Hosting Direct, wind powered
Tree Center, wind and solar powered
Think Host, 100% wind/solar powered
SustainableWebsites, 100% wind
XERT Communications, Australian based 100% renewable powered
Ilisys, Australian based carbon neutral
Green ISPs
More information
TreeHugger article on several green web hosting companies
Eco Business Links, directory of about 10 green hosting companies
Comments
Thank you for the excellent round up, Will. You have a very comprehensive listing here and we hope when we launch tomorrow you'll check us out. Best wishes!
Posted by: Mike Corrales | July 31, 2007 1:27 PM