Knowledge Organiser: Environmental Issues in Computing
Key Terms
- E-waste: Discarded electronic devices that end up in landfill, releasing toxic chemicals
- Carbon footprint: Total CO2 emissions produced by manufacturing, running, and disposing of devices
- Data centre: Large facility housing servers that power cloud services and the internet
- Critical minerals: Materials (e.g. cobalt, lithium, tantalum) mined for electronics, causing environmental damage
- Renewable energy: Power from sustainable sources (solar, wind) used to reduce carbon emissions
Must-Know Facts
- Data centres use a small but growing share of the world's electricity (estimates are about 1 to 3 percent)
- E-waste contains toxic materials: lead, mercury, cadmium — harmful in landfill
- Manufacturing devices requires mining critical minerals, damaging ecosystems
- Negative impacts: MECE — Manufacturing, E-waste, Carbon footprint, Energy consumption
- Positive impacts: remote working, digital documents, smart grids, environmental monitoring
- Solutions: renewable energy for data centres, recycling schemes, energy-efficient hardware
Key Concepts
- Technology has BOTH negative AND positive environmental impacts — always discuss both
- Manufacturing phase: mining damage + factory emissions (before device is even used)
- Use phase: energy consumption from devices, networks, and data centres
- End-of-life phase: e-waste toxic landfill vs recycling/refurbishing
- Cloud computing shifts energy use from individual devices to large data centres
Common Mistakes
- Only discussing negative environmental impacts: Examiners expect both sides — technology also reduces emissions (remote working, digital documents, smart energy grids)
- Forgetting the manufacturing phase: Environmental impact begins before a device is even used — mining critical minerals and factory production both cause significant harm
- Saying e-waste is just "rubbish": E-waste contains toxic materials (lead, mercury, cadmium) that leach into soil and water — the specific hazard matters in exam answers
- Ignoring data centres when discussing energy use: Data centres use a small but growing share of the world's electricity — they are a major environmental factor, not just individual devices
- Vague answers about solutions: "Use less technology" is not an acceptable answer — specific solutions include renewable energy for data centres, recycling schemes, and energy-efficient hardware design