Apple rejects Greenpeace data center estimate as inaccurate
Apple has taken issue with the consumption estimates for its Maiden, N.C. data center included in a just-published "How Clean is Your Cloud?" report by Greenpeace, noting that renewable energy will provide 50 percent more of the center's power needs than the environmental advocacy group projected.
Greenpeace on Tuesday gave Apple low marks in its new report and criticized it for its reliance on coal-based power. In the report, the organization dismissed Apple's renewable energy efforts for its Maiden, N.C., server farm as providing just 10 percent of "their total generation."
The Cupertino, Calif., company quickly responded in a statement, according to NPR.
"Our data center in North Carolina will draw about 20 megawatts at full capacity, and we are on track to supply more than 60 percent of that power on-site from renewable sources including a solar farm and fuel cell installation which will each be the largest of their kind in the country," said spokeswoman Kristin Huguet. "We believe this industry-leading project will make Maiden the greenest data center ever built, and it will be joined next year by our new facility in Oregon running on 100 percent renewable energy."
Earlier this year, Apple confirmed plans to build a "green" data center in Prineville, Oregon.
Greenpeace said in its original report that it had provided its facility power demand estimates to Amazon and Apple and both had responded that the figures were inaccurate. The group noted that it decided to publish the report anyway and invite the companies to "be transparent and provide more accurate data."
The organization issued a follow-up post on Tuesday explaining the reasoning behind its estimate and commenting on Apple's response.
"While we welcome Apple’s attempt today to provide more specific details on its North Carolina iData Center, it does not appear to have provided the full story, and is instead seeking to provide select pieces of information to make their dirty energy footprint seem smaller," the post read.
Apple revealed in February plans to build a 20-megawatt solar farm and 5-megawatt fuel cell installation for its North Carolina facility. Both projects are the largest non-utility installations of their kind in the U.S.
The Maiden data center opened last spring and provides support to Apple's iCloud and iTunes services. The company has pledged to spend as much as $1 billion on the facility over 10 years in exchange for tax breaks the local government.
A "dirty data" report from the environmental watchdog last year gave Apple the lowest Clean Energy Index score among other technology companies such as Facebook, Google, Microsoft and Amazon. At the time, the group criticized Apple's decision to base the data center in North Carolina because the state is notorious for having some of the "dirtiest" electricity in the U.S.
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Comments
Jobs was right - Greenpeace would be better served by hiring actual engineers and scientists to do real analysis
Off by 500%! Not even fuc**** close!!! Ha ha. You dumb shits
Sigh... why does Apple even bother to dignify these publicity-seeking liars with a response!?
Just re-issue some of Steve Jobs' classic, profane replies to these imbeciles.
Greenpeace will be exposed in the near future for what they really are: trying to shut down Western economies with their stupid wind turbines that could never replace nuclear, don't give into their fascist demands.
Sigh... why does Apple even bother to dignify these publicity-seeking liars with a response!?
They never used to. This sort of thing is new.
In honor of Shitpeace, I will attempt to use up a bunch of extra kilowatts of what is most likely dirty electricity very soon. It's not much, but every little bit helps.
You can do better than that!
Take some dry cleaning fluid containing TCE and dump it into a water well!
What if Apple just decided to say "fuc* the planet" and used NO renewable energy at all? This whole Greenpeace fiasco is pure politics. Pure bull crap.
Don't fall for this nonsense of man-made "man-bear-pig" climate change clap-trap, it's all government funded junk science.
Greenpeace will be exposed in the near future for what they really are: trying to shut down Western economies with their stupid wind turbines that could never replace nuclear, don't give into their fascist demands.
Agreed (or should I say 'this'?
It seems just as plausible as Greenpeace's story.
How come Apple's data centre uses 5 times as much power as similar sized data centres?
That's what Greenpeace base their figures on.
Seriously though, the best way to lower your carbon footprint outside of suicide is to not have kids. I encourage all hippies to follow both parts of my pragmatic advice.
you would think Greenpeace would be praising the company that's building the largest solar farm and the largest fuel cell installation in the country. THe other companies have to be laughing that they are being praised for actually doing far less.
I think the greenie hippies are saying that Apple doesn't tell them what they are doing, or promising to do things, so they are therefore B.A.D.
Apple should realize that promises are just as good as delivery to brain dead NGOs like this mob. Apple should do what is a popular saying in my country: feed the chooks.
Just make up plans to convert to 100% methane from the local sewer, One Day, with blow by blow reporting to greenpeace, some day soon, and Apple would all of a sudden be a saint.
Sigh... why does Apple even bother to dignify these publicity-seeking liars with a response!?
Greenpuke needs to mind their own buisness .