In a recent newsroom update, Facebook announced that its new data center in Iowa will be a completely wind-powered building, drawing all of its energy from a local farm.
This will be the social media giant's fourth data center and it is set to open in 2015. Alike its sustainable counterparts in Sweden and Oregon, the plant in Altoona, Iowa will take advantage of the abundance of winds available. It is estimated that the wind turbines will supply more energy than Facebook's center will require, so about 138 MW of new renewable wind energy will be given back to the grid.
Facebook is not the only large tech company to be forward-thinking about sustainability. In fact, it almost seems like a rivalry between Microsoft and Google, but this friendly competition is welcome if it's going to force these huge businesses to be more eco-friendly than its competitors.
Sustainable Social Media Centers
Facebook's New Data Center Will Be a Wind-Powered Building
Trend Themes
1. Renewable Energy Data Centers - Opportunities for developing data centers powered by renewable energy sources, such as wind or solar power.
2. Sustainable Tech Rivalry - Competition among large tech companies to be leaders in sustainability, driving innovative solutions and eco-friendly practices.
3. Energy Grid Contributions - Data centers capable of generating excess renewable energy to give back to the power grid, contributing to the expansion of green energy sources.
Industry Implications
1. Renewable Energy - Sustainable energy companies that provide wind or solar power solutions for data centers and other tech infrastructures.
2. Tech Hardware Manufacturing - Manufacturers of energy-efficient computer hardware and infrastructure systems for sustainable data centers.
3. Software & Internet Services - Companies offering energy optimization software and services for data centers, enabling better energy efficiency and grid contributions.