Tech

TVs pollute more than smartphones, a study proves it

TVs pollute more than smartphones, suggests a joint study by ADEME and Arcep. According to a report submitted to the government, the manufacture of televisions is responsible for a large part of the digital carbon footprint in France.

TV
Credits: Glenn Carstens-Peters/Unsplash

At the end of January 2022, the Environment and Energy Management Agency (ADEME) and the Regulatory Authority for Electronic Communications, Posts and Press Distribution (Arcep) published a study online titled “environmental footprint of digital in France”.

This report, intended for members of the French government, aims to “measure the environmental footprint of digital technology in France and identify action levers and best practices to reduce it”. First of all, the report points to the urgent need to act in order to limit the environmental impact of the digital sector, which is likely to increase exponentially by 2040. Currently, however, digital represents only 2.5% of the country’s annual carbon footprint.

On the same topic: The Internet generates as much pollution as the plane – here’s how to reduce your carbon footprint

TV production is bad for the environment

The study claims that terminals (TV, PC, smartphones, tablets, etc.) are mainly responsible for the digital carbon footprint in France. “The digital carbon footprint is mainly linked to terminals, which account for 79% of the footprint”, warns the report. Devices are followed by data centers (more than 16%) and networks (around 5%).

Note that it is the manufacture of digital-related terminals that pollutes the most. “The equipment manufacturing phase (terminals, servers, boxes, etc.) represents 78% of the total, while the use phase represents 21%”, explains the study. The most polluting device on the market is none other than the television. These represent 11 to 30% of pollution generated by digital devices.

According to the report, the importance of the environmental impact of TV is the result of its omnipresence in French homes. The vast majority of French people have one or more televisions in their homes, including the oldest. In addition, the format of televisions forces manufacturers to use more resources. “The manufacturing phase concentrates the majority of impacts for the carbon footprint and natural abiotic resources (metals and minerals)”, summarizes the report.

More broadly, the “screens and audiovisual equipment” turn out to be more polluting than the other terminals. ADEME and Arcep mainly highlight video projectors, PC screens, store screens or other display panels. On the other hand, the operators’ TV boxes “represent a fairly marginal part of the environmental impact” digital.

Not surprisingly, the environmental impact of connected objectss, such as connected watches, connected speakers or connected bulbs, is still negligible. “IoT devices currently represent a fairly small share (less than 7%) of the device footprint”, says the report, stressing that the situation is set to change in the years to come.

The study recommends buying refurbished smartphones

On the other hand, the environmental impact of smartphones has been reassessed downwards. “While the impact of telephones is substantial, it is far from being the majority”, says the government report. The size of smartphones implies the use of fewer materials than a television.

However, the particularly short renewal cycle of smartphones plays against them. Most consumers change phones more often than TVs. According to a study, 55% of consumers now prefer to wait between 3 and 5 years before changing their smartphone. The lack of major innovation pushes users to wait several generations before investing in a new phone.

ADEME and Arcep ensure that “the weight of the manufacturing phase is often the main source of impact (over 80%), which confirms the importance of policies aimed at extending the useful life of digital equipment”. To reduce the footprint of mobile telephony, the report recommends that French people don’t buy a new smartphone. In order to avoid electronic waste, the study recommends preferring refurbished smartphones, having already been used, to smartphones which have just been released on the market.

Good news, more and more consumers are already turning to the refurbished market. The market for used phones grew by 4% in 2020, during the Covid-19 pandemic, suggests a study by Counterpoint, a global research company specializing in products from the TMT (technology, media and telecommunications) industry. . Sadly, a law that came into force at the end of 2021 risk of driving up the prices of refurbished devices. The private copying tax effectively removes the exemption from the fee for refurbished smartphones.

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