Government Technology - May 2008 - (Page 19) How Green Is Your IT? Almost 150 Government Technology subscribers responded to a February survey on green technology. Forty percent of those respondents came from state government, and another 40 percent came from local government. Subscribers from federal government, higher education and K-12 schools made up the rest. Here are the results: is driving with a sedan with one person in it from the same location to the same location. Let’s combine the trips and ditch one of those cars,’” Semmes said. Readers were asked to rate green IT as both a political priority and an IT priority in their jurisdiction. The results show strong alignment between the political and operational drivers for energy conservation. 12% 12% 20% 20% 37% 3. 22% 4. 10% 7% 20% 1 = Not a priority 5 = Top priority Benchmark It California state government must track exactly how much energy it uses — and where it uses that energy the most — in order to achieve the mandated 20 percent cut in energy consumption. Rather than collecting massive stores of data on energy usage and building a new database to establish benchmarks, Semmes is taking advantage of existing resources outside state government. The federal Energy Star program already has a database built for analyzing power consumption. And the power utilities already have information on where and how much electricity agencies use because electricity is metered. Instead of asking agencies to assemble the data, Semmes will have utilities download the information directly into the Energy Star database. “We can use that benchmarking data to determine what makes sense economically and which green things we should be doing,” Semmes said. But there are limits on the level of detail those benchmarks would provide at various facilities. In many cases, just one meter measures electricity for an entire campus. Semmes said the limited benchmarks would at least give the DGS a head start as it prioritizes energy efficiency efforts. 1. Political Priority IT Priority 2. 41% In the next year, how much do you anticipate energy costs for your data center will increase? I don’t anticipate an increase 1 to 10 percent 10 to 20 percent 20 to 30 percent More than 30 percent 28% 40% 25% 7% 1% 5. What effect have budget constraints had on your department’s ability to meet green IT goals? They have constrained green IT efforts. They have been a driver for green IT efforts. No impact 49% 16% 35% Mapping the Wind Property tax revenue is pouring into a once-anemic government budget in Cascade County, Mont., thanks to a wind speed GIS tool the county provides to wind power developers. Normally when a new business moves to Cascade County, it relocates to the city of Cascade for access to sewer and water infrastructure. Consequently outlying county areas often get no additional tax revenue from new businesses. Wind turbines, though, are ideally suited for rural land, said Peggy Beltrone, Cascade County commissioner. Does your organization have the ability to meter and monitor power consumption of the data center independent of the facility in which it is housed? Yes 28% No 72% Which of the following is your organization considering to reduce its impact on the environment? (Please check all that apply.) Refreshing equipment with Energy Star-compliant models 49% Encouraging energy-conscious behavior among employees 67% Implementing telecommuting programs 21% Implementing green procurement 23% Using Green Grid protocols in data center management 11% Other 12% None 15% What percentage of your IT budget does energy consumption account for? Less than 10 percent More than 10 but less than 25 percent More than 25 but less than 50 percent More than 50 percent Energy consumption is not calculated as part of my budget Don’t know 15% 12% 6% 1% 19% 47% Should your jurisdiction have a chief green officer/chief sustainability officer? Yes 39% No 62% 19 http://www.govtech.com
For optimal viewing of this digital publication, please enable JavaScript and then refresh the page. If you would like to try to load the digital publication without using Flash Player detection, please click here.