Businesses unprepared for Carbon Reduction Commitment

Many firms remain unaware of how much energy they actually use

Two-thirds of organisations are not ready for the new Carbon Reduction Commitment (CRC) legislation, despite many claiming to list green IT as a key element of their IT strategies.

Research by consultancy firm Morse found that, although 72 per cent of IT directors regard reducing power consumption and carbon emissions as a priority, they remain unaware of the best ways to make this happen.

Furthermore, 79 per cent of organisations said that the new legislation will at least make them reconsider the way they look at the environmental impact of IT operations, despite the reluctance by many to adhere to the CRC.

Brian Murray, a principal consultant at Morse, said that many businesses remain unsure of how the legislation affects them.

"Many firms may be unaware of the CRC scheme and, despite undertaking initiatives to cut energy consumption to provide operational and reputational benefits, they do not realise that they can connect this into the new scheme," he said.

"However, with the first audits for the scheme due in September, many firms may suddenly rush to meet the CRC requirements as they realise that they could be hit with financial penalties if they have not moved to meet the new legislation."

The research found that, despite 56 per cent of organisations having set targets to reduce energy consumption, 70 per cent do not know how much power they use.

IT departments need to take a proactive approach to cutting energy consumption by taking departmental responsibility for their energy emissions, Murray argued.

"Rather than waiting for the board to demand that the IT department cuts its emissions, IT staff should offer to take responsibility for their energy emissions to ensure that any reductions will reduce IT department energy bills and free up their budget," he said.

The CRC was introduced in April, and has already caused confusion among datacentre providers. Many have argued that the initiative penalises their operations, and the smaller businesses that take advantage of their services, by concentrating purely on energy use.