Hacker News with Generative AI: Environmental Impact

The cost of AI is being paid in deserts far from Silicon Valley (restofworld.org)
When Sonia Ramos was a child, she witnessed an accident that would shape the rest of her life.
Artificial Intelligence, Environmental Impact, Economics
16 points by donohoe 32 days ago | 3 comments
Big tech's new datacentres will take water from the driest areas (theguardian.com)
Amazon, Microsoft and Google are operating datacentres that use vast amounts of water in some of the world’s driest areas and are building many more, the non-profit investigatory organisation SourceMaterial and the Guardian have found.
Data Centers, Water Management, Environmental Impact, Technology, Big Tech
4 points by anticorporate 42 days ago | 0 comments
Within 15 years, plummeting satellites could alter winds, temps in stratosphere (admin-cires.colorado.edu)
Within 15 years, plummeting satellites could release enough aluminum to alter winds, temps in the stratosphere (news)
Space Debris, Climate Change, Atmospheric Science, Satellite Technology, Environmental Impact
6 points by layer8 53 days ago | 3 comments
Elon Musk's xAI in Memphis: 35 gas turbines, no air pollution permits (eenews.net)
MEMPHIS, Tennessee — Elon Musk’s artificial intelligence company is belching smog-forming pollution into an area of South Memphis that already leads the state in emergency department visits for asthma.
Artificial Intelligence, Environmental Impact, Pollution, Tennessee
19 points by zzzeek 57 days ago | 2 comments
A cheat sheet for why using ChatGPT is not bad for the environment (simonwillison.net)
A cheat sheet for why using ChatGPT is not bad for the environment. The idea that personal LLM use is environmentally irresponsible shows up a lot in many of the online spaces I frequent. I've touched on my doubts around this in the past but I've never felt confident enough in my own understanding of environmental issues to invest more effort pushing back.
Environmental Impact, ChatGPT
50 points by edward 59 days ago | 50 comments
Beyond Performance: Measuring the environmental impact of analytical databases (arxiv.org)
The exponential growth of data is making query processing increasingly critical for modern computing infrastructure, yet the environmental impact of database operations remains poorly understood and largely overlooked.
Environmental Impact, Database, Performance, Data Management
17 points by samaysharma 59 days ago | 4 comments
There Is One Clear Winner in the Corn vs. Solar Battle (cleantechnica.com)
“Solar energy is often framed as a threat to croplands. However, vast croplands in the Midwestern United States already support corn ethanol biofuel, a form of energy with a greater land-use footprint per unit energy (~30×) and potential environmental impact (e.g., excessive fertilizer application) than solar energy. We envisioned sustainable agro-ecosystems that can result from converting a small proportion of corn ethanol croplands into ecologically informed solar facilities (i.e., ecovoltaics).
Renewable Energy, Solar Energy, Agriculture, Environmental Impact
9 points by joak 60 days ago | 3 comments
Sustainability still not a high priority for datacenter industry (theregister.com)
When it comes to building datacenters, reducing the environmental impact of the project is still not seen as a major concern – it is lower on the list than cost of equipment and materials, skills shortages, a possible downturn in projects, and even bad weather.
Sustainability, Data Centers, Technology, Business, Environmental Impact
7 points by rntn 65 days ago | 1 comments
Melting glaciers will harm us all. Yet still we watch, unmoved (theguardian.com)
The problems that now afflict attempts to establish a military presence in the far north of Canada and Greenland provide timely warnings about the miseries that lie ahead for the rest of the planet as global warming continues its remorseless spread.
Climate Change, Global Warming, Environmental Impact, Canada, Greenland
7 points by rntn 68 days ago | 2 comments
Tesla's Avoided Emissions Are Up to 49% Overstated, a Study Claims (carboncredits.com)
Tesla has established itself as a leader in the fight against climate change. It often emphasizes its role in cutting greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by promoting electric vehicles (EVs).
Tesla, Electric Vehicles, Climate Change, Research, Environmental Impact
9 points by mrtksn 72 days ago | 1 comments
Apple surpasses 60 percent reduction in global greenhouse gas emissions (apple.com)
Apple has surpassed a 60 percent reduction in its global greenhouse gas emissions, part of its Apple 2030 goal to become carbon neutral across its entire footprint.
Sustainability, Apple, Environmental Impact, Technology
5 points by soheilpro 72 days ago | 0 comments
Big tech's new datacentres will take water from the driest areas (theguardian.com)
Amazon, Microsoft and Google are operating datacentres that use vast amounts of water in some of the world’s driest areas and are building many more, an investigation by SourceMaterial and the Guardian has found.
Data Centers, Water Resources, Environmental Impact, Technology, Big Tech
11 points by n1b0m 79 days ago | 2 comments
Deep-sea mining threatens sea life in a way no one is thinking about (theconversation.com)
As the demand for electric car batteries and smartphones grows, mining companies are turning their attention to the deep sea, where precious metals such as nickel and cobalt can be found in potato-size nodules sitting on the ocean floor.
Deep-sea mining, Environmental Impact, Mining, Electric Vehicles, Smartphones
15 points by pseudolus 89 days ago | 1 comments
'They turned our home into a cemetery': high price of El Salvador's Bitcoin City (theguardian.com)
Mangroves are being destroyed and residents displaced to make way for an airport to serve president Nayib Bukele’s vision of a tax-free economic hub
Bitcoin, El Salvador, Environmental Impact, Politics, Real Estate
27 points by pseudolus 101 days ago | 9 comments
Email signatures are harming the planet and could cost people their lives (theconversation.com)
A recent study has shown that the environmental and human mortality impacts of modern information technology — especially email infrastructure — are significant.
Environmental Impact, Technology, Climate Change, Health
8 points by jscohn85 103 days ago | 7 comments
Global sales of combustion engine cars have peaked (ourworldindata.org)
Global sales of combustion engine cars have peaked
Automotive Industry, Statistics, Environmental Impact
239 points by myroon5 116 days ago | 341 comments
Pollution from Big Tech's data centre boom costs US public health $5.4bn (ft.com)
Pollution from Big Tech’s data centre boom costs US public health $5.4bn
Big Tech, Data Centers, Environmental Impact, Public Health, Cost
201 points by 1vuio0pswjnm7 124 days ago | 160 comments
Polyethylene packaging and alternative materials: A life cycle assessment (sciencedirect.com)
A comprehensive life cycle assessment was conducted to evaluate the potential environmental impacts of polyethylene (PE) packaging and its alternatives, including paper, glass, aluminum, and steel in the United States.
Environmental Impact, Packaging, Sustainability, Materials
5 points by PaulHoule 126 days ago | 1 comments
Malaysia is betting on data centers to boost its economy (apnews.com)
Malaysia is betting that potential economic growth from data centers justifies the risk.
Malaysia, Data Centers, Economics, Environmental Impact
120 points by rntn 128 days ago | 110 comments
Nevada Ivanpah Solar Plant Accidentally Incinerates Up to 6k Birds a Year (2016) (sciencealert.com)
A rare and unusual type of solar power plant that concentrates sunlight in California is accidentally killing up to 6,000 birds every year, with staff reporting that the birds keep flying into its concentrated beams of sunlight, and spontaneously bursting into flames.
Solar Power, Environmental Impact, Accidents, Wildlife, Technology
36 points by walterbell 145 days ago | 57 comments
AI, but at What Cost? Breakdown of AI's Carbon Footprint (loopbreaker.substack.com)
Amid the excitement and tech moguls' gold rush to the next model, have we stopped to consider the environmental cost of running these models—with their hundreds of billions of parameters—for hours on end, scaled across multiple instances, serving millions of users simultaneously?
Artificial Intelligence, Environmental Impact, Technology, Sustainability
92 points by tnahrf 150 days ago | 162 comments
World's darkest and clearest skies at risk from industrial megaproject (eso.org)
On December 24th, AES Andes, a subsidiary of the US power company AES Corporation, submitted a project for a massive industrial complex for environmental impact assessment. This complex threatens the pristine skies above ESO’s Paranal Observatory in Chile’s Atacama Desert, the darkest and clearest of any astronomical observatory in the world [1].
Astronomy, Chile, Environmental Impact, Industrial Development, Light Pollution
252 points by Breadmaker 167 days ago | 160 comments
Great Whales Can Live a Lot Longer Than We Thought – If We Leave Them Alone (theguardian.com)
Bowhead whales may not be the only species that can live to 200 years old. Researchers have found that the industrial hunting of great whales has masked the ability of these underwater giants to also live to great ages
Marine Biology, Longevity, Conservation, Environmental Impact, Whales
4 points by m463 175 days ago | 0 comments
PlasticList's Advice for Food Companies (twitter.com)
Food Industry, Sustainability, Marketing, Environmental Impact, Business
134 points by Jimmc414 176 days ago | 99 comments
Just 100 companies responsible for 71% of global emissions, study says (2017) (theguardian.com)
Just 100 companies have been the source of more than 70% of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions since 1988, according to a new report.
Climate Change, Environmental Impact, Corporate Responsibility, Sustainability
11 points by belter 182 days ago | 2 comments
The Destructive Legacy of Failed Aquaculture (undark.org)
Aquaculture is big business in Canada. In 2023, open-net-pen salmon farming in British Columbia alone produced more than 50,000 tons of fish worth just over $350 million. But on June 30, 2029, the federal government’s long-looming ban on open-net-pen salmon farming is set to take effect. On that day, 63 operations will be forced to shut down.
Aquaculture, Environmental Impact, Canada, Business
6 points by EA-3167 187 days ago | 0 comments
TikTok's annual carbon footprint is likely bigger than Greece's, study finds (theguardian.com)
TikTok’s annual carbon footprint is probably larger than that of Greece, according to a new analysis of the social media platform’s environmental impact, with the average user generating greenhouse gases equivalent to driving an extra 123 miles in a gasoline-powered car each year.
Social Media, Environmental Impact, Climate Change, Technology
3 points by aguaviva 196 days ago | 0 comments
Next-generation datacenters consume zero water for cooling (microsoft.com)
This summer, we released our Datacenter Community Pledge, detailing our commitment to the local economies and communities in which we operate our datacenters. Protecting local watersheds is an important part of this pledge—especially in areas where water stress is growing.
Data Centers, Sustainability, Environmental Impact, Technology, Microsoft
12 points by mooreds 199 days ago | 14 comments
Sound of traffic increases stress and anxiety, study finds (sciencedaily.com)
Manmade sounds such vehicle traffic can mask the positive impact of nature soundscapes on people's stress and anxiety, according to a new study published November 27, 2024, in the open-access journal PLOS ONE by Paul Lintott of the University of the West of England, U.K., and Lia Gilmour of the Bat Conservation Trust, U.K.
Science, Health, Environmental Impact, Noise Pollution
9 points by chippy 206 days ago | 1 comments
In shallow waters, cruise ships can churn up as much sediment as a hurricane (wlrn.org)
When cruise ships lumber into Key West’s shallow harbor, they can sometimes churn up a storm of sediment more potent than a hurricane, new monitoring by the city shows.
Environmental Impact, Cruise Ships, Key West, Sediment, Hurricanes
25 points by pseudolus 209 days ago | 7 comments