What is the carbon footprint of a laptop?

Over 272 million new laptops are produced each year, making the IT industry responsible for as much greenhouse gas pollution as the entire airline industry(!) This equates to the IT industry contributing 2% of global carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions. Fortunately, there are simple solutions to reduce those CO2 emissions. Like deploying used devices. In this blog article look at how to calculate a laptop's carbon footprint and how to reduce it.

With the growing increase in our Internet usage and the number of people using cell phones and tablets every day, the environmental impact of IT will increase significantly. Companies and organizations are increasingly aware of the environmental impact of their daily activities and they are looking for ways to reduce their carbon footprint.
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How much CO2 does a laptop produce?
The carbon footprint of a laptop is based on the total emissions of greenhouse gases (such as carbon dioxide, CO2, and methane, CH4) throughout the life cycle of the device. CO2 emissions vary depending on the manufacturer, the size of the laptop, and how often the laptop is used. On average, the carbon footprint of a laptop is estimated to be 422.5 kg, including carbon emissions during production, transportation and the first 4 years of use.
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carbon footprint during the production of a laptop
Our partner's research, which analyzed 230 specific laptops, found that the average carbon footprint during the production of a new laptop is 331 kg. This means that just 3 new laptops produce about a ton of CO2 and have a volume comparable to a single-family home, which is about 19,000 cubic meters. Laptop production accounts for 75% to 85% of the total carbon footprint. Most of these emissions come from the manufacturing processes and use of materials such as the motherboard, SSD and screen. In addition, large amounts of water (190,000 liters) and soil (1,200 kg) are also used during the production of a laptop. In addition, the
components of a typical laptop contain mercury, lead, chromium and other heavy metals.
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Transport
Transport is another major factor contributing to the carbon footprint of laptops. The emissions caused by vehicles in the supply chain have quite an impact. Most of the emissions come from air transport of laptops from the country of assembly to the country of use. If laptops were transported exclusively by sea or land, CO2 emissions would be significantly reduced. Manufacturers estimate that transportation accounts for 6% to 12% of a laptop's CO2 emissions. For this blog article, we assume that transportation accounts for about 30 kg of CO2.
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CO2 footprint during the use of a laptop
To measure the CO2 footprint of a laptop, we need to look at its entire life cycle, including daily use. The lifetime of a laptop is estimated to be 4 years, assuming 8 hours of daily use. Power consumption can vary widely, and most manufacturers acknowledge that estimates are questionable. Among the laptops we supply, HP has the lowest carbon footprint during use, at about 32 kg CO2, while the Lenovo T450 has the highest at 91 kg CO2. For our calculations of the total carbon footprint, we used an average of 61.5 kg of CO2.

Indirect Carbon Footprint
Although in this article we mainly focus on the direct use of laptops, it is important to realize that Internet use also generates CO2 emissions. Online surfing is not completely green and the "Cloud" is in fact a large data center that consumes a lot of energy for power and cooling.

The end of life of a laptop
It is important to consider the end of life of a laptop because of the environmental impact it causes. In terms of CO2 emissions, almost every manufacturer's reported emissions are negligible. Most manufacturers report CO2 emissions of 1 kg or less when recycling the laptop, which is not accounted for in their carbon footprint report.
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How your company can also reduce your IT CO2 emissions
As we have established, the largest contributor to a laptop's carbon footprint is the manufacturing process. So what if we reduced the carbon impact of buying a new laptop by choosing used laptops? That way, the carbon footprint of buying a laptop could be reduced by 85%!

Alternative to new: Circlewise 'remanufactured' laptops
The term 'remanufactured' refers to what we offer: used laptops that are rebuilt and function just as well, or even better, than new laptops. All parts that are still in good condition are reused and the device is given a new look - both inside and out. Parts are replaced or upgraded as needed to provide unmatched quality. Laptops are not the biggest culprits when it comes to carbon emissions, but how they are produced and what happens when they become obsolete does matter. Why not explore the alternatives when considering buying a new laptop?
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For the full portfolio of our remanufactured laptops, visit www.gocirclewise.com/portfolio

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