I am sure that any of you who have read my past articles know, I am a Google supporter and believe that overall the folks at Google are doing a great job. Google has also jumped on the ‘green’ band wagon and we have read about their interest in hybrid cars and also other energy initiatives such as solar energy. But as a consumer it makes me wonder how can a company that is using incredible amounts of electricity, while reporting record profits, continue to be allowed to squander our natural resources at an alarming rate, so we can have the benefits of finding our favorite chocolate chip recipe quickly on the Internet?

Google employs what are called server farms. These farms of computers are what fuel the quick search results that Google has become famous for. It has been estimated that these farms comprise of hundreds of thousands of computers [no one except Google knows the exact number] all of which require electricity to run and electricity for cooling to run efficiently. If we look at just a theoretical number of say 100,000 computers using say $300 a year each to run, that is only $30 million per year. Cheap when compared to the billions of dollars the company takes in yearly.

So my thinking is this. Google should be required to build its own electrical generating plants using the latest in ‘green’ technology to power their money making empire, thus relieving the strain on our fragile electrical grid? By doing this Google would demonstrate that it is a good neighbor, that they are REALLY concerned about the environment, and that they can play well with others. Or is their motto of ‘do no harm’ just words?

So what do you think? Should Google provide their own electricity for their mega million watt consumption that now falls onto our already failing electrical system? Or should the consumers just be happy campers knowing a fast search result far outweighs anything else?

Comments welcome.

Tags: google, electricity, environment, green