The title of this tip is taken from a post which addresses this very question. The data the author uses is from this Google post.
The numbers are pretty eye opening when you view the total aggregates and just illustrates that everything we do has some footprint. While running a search is a mere drop in the ocean, the flip side is the ocean is full because there are a lot of drops.
As someone who is very conscience of the footprint I have (after all, my daughter will have to grow up on this planet with the mess our generation is creating), I don’t necessarily see this as “doom and gloom” type numbers. For example, if running several Google searches saves you a trip to the library, then this saves a significant amount of CO2.
As a somewhat parallel example, every post I make on PCMech leaves a footprint. The power my computer equipment uses (I’m not on solar… yet), the energy it takes to route my data through my ISP’s network, the power the PCMech servers consume, the power your computer uses to read it, etc. all have a measurable impact. Missing from these numbers, however, are any savings which may result. For example, if I point to a free program which is a replacement for a commercial program you might have ordered, the CO2 savings from downloading the program as compared to going to the store and buying or ordering and having it shipped to you greatly offset the “cost”.
I got a bit off subject here, but regardless the linked article is quite an informative 2-minute read.
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