Why choose a green web host for your business website?

Being online takes up much more of the earth’s energy than we think. More than two per cent of the world’s greenhouse emissions are due to data centres. In the UK, facilities like these consume 41.11 Terawatt-hours per year or 12 per cent of the nation’s electricity consumption. Minimising our impact on the environment involves finding alternatives like green web hosting.

What Is Green Hosting?

Green or eco-friendly web hosting lowers the overall ecological impact of web-based activity. Each hosting provider has a different way of reducing their clients’ overall carbon footprint, and one of the most popular ways is using renewable energy.

All data centres will need to use some electricity. What matters is how it produces that energy—this is the most significant factor contributing to a web hosting company’s carbon footprint. Green web hosting companies use wind or solar energy to power their services.

The type of energy a facility uses often relies on its location. For example, if your data centre is in a semi-arid area like Surrey, you can put solar panels on the roof and be done with it. However, not every host can do this. For other green web hosting providers, the solution is to purchase and use green energy credits.

There are other ways these web hosting companies can offer green services. Electronic security, climate control, and even the design and infrastructure of their building can reduce their carbon footprint.

Why Should You Choose a Green Host?

When companies decide on a green web host, they have various reasons to do so. The first is a concern for the environment. Since the hosting industry produces a significant amount of emissions, carbon footprint reduction is everyone’s responsibility.

Using green hosting also improves a company’s image. If you already frame yourself as an eco-friendly business, having a green web host will reinforce that message. Energy-efficient hosting can also help you save money. The best part? You can pass those savings onto the customer.

The Environmental Impact of Web Hosting

Power consumption is one of the most significant issues in web hosting. Servers and cooling units both require electricity. You cannot turn them off without losing enormous amounts of traffic and annoying customers—consequently, the more websites to host, the greater the consumption of a hosting company.

Another reason why companies look into carbon neutral web hosting is that manufacturing server hardware and its components require plenty of power. It involves mining, chemical processing, and transportation across the globe, which all produce industrial waste. This aspect of building a web hosting company is harder to make eco-friendly; one option available to people is to buy Energy Star-rated servers.

The amount of land that data centres occupy, plus the resources needed to construct these facilities, also contribute to a company’s carbon footprint. Shared hosting is a viable solution—these services use fewer resources and land, which means a smaller footprint.

Conclusion

There are plenty of benefits to becoming a more energy-efficient company. Besides being great for your company’s marketing, choosing a green web host also means more savings for your business. Most of all, with an eco-friendly hosting solution, you know that you’re doing your part in making the digital space more sustainable.

Helping the earth doesn’t have a hefty price tag—NetWeaver’s green web hosting solutions start at £4.50 per month, including VAT. We have a genuine commitment to minimising our impact on the planet, and our environmental policy isn’t greenwashed. Let’s make a difference together!