Creek & Pine methodology is a set of processes that result in a sustainable, high performant digital products and services.
How do websites produce CO2?
Website produce CO2 by consuming electricity and consequently emitting CO2 through the following activities:
- Website development – different technologies vary in energy consumption
- In data centers, on servers – the heavier (less optimized) the page is, the more space it takes up on the servers, the more energy it requires to be maintained, and the more expensive the monthly / annual maintenance cost is
- Data transfer through the network from the data center to the device
- Data processing and visual display on the user’s device – the heavier the website, the more difficult it is to load it on the device, and the more power / battery it consumes
With more than 5.3 billion internet users, 1.1 billion existing websites and 250,000 new websites every day, it is estimated that next year the IT industry could use 20% of the total electricity generated and emit 5.5% of the world’s CO2 emissions – more even than global dairy and aviation industries.
*On Global Electricity Usage of Communication Technology: Trends to 2030, Andrae & Edler (2015)
Method for calculating CO2 emissions
Estimating greenhouse gas emissions from digital services is complex. We use The Sustainable Web Design Model (SWDM), an open-source and multi-year collaboration project between leading digital sustainability experts. SWDM calculates CO2 by considering three main segments:
- Data Centers: Energy to store and serve data
- Networks: Energy required to transfer data
- User Devices: Energy consumed by the devices that access the service
Each segment includes both operational emissions (energy used during operation) and embodied emissions (energy used in manufacturing). The model uses data transfer measured in gigabytes and a global carbon intensity factor (494g/kWh) to estimate emissions.
Sources come from International Energy Agency, International Telecommunication Union, and multiple research papers like Malmodin, 2023. You can find all the calculations and data explanations here.
The SWDM aligns with established standards like the GHG Protocol for comprehensive and transparent reporting. The rating itself, from A+ to F, is a relative scale that distributes all websites ever tested in classes based on how much CO2 they produce. The average result is always improving as it takes into calculation every new page tested.
What we analyze in order to see if the website is sustainable?
Website performance
Pages that are heavy and slow take a long time to load and have unoptimized content, adversely affect the business result and emit more CO2.
User experience
If navigation and website architecture are subpar, the users will have to load multiple pages in their journey to the desired information. A poor user experience frustrates, causes website abandonment and directly affects the business bottom line.
CO2 footprint (includes measuring the impact of a website on multiple impact points)
Those points include data centers (is the server powered by renewable or non-renewable energy sources, is it located near or far from the users?), transfer of data through the network from the data center to the device, data processing and visual display on the user’s device.
Carbon reduction vs. carbon offsetting
Creek & Pine does not support carbon offsetting and instead fights for carbon reduction!
Carbon offsetting should only be used to neutralize those emissions that cannot be reduced in any other way. If we know that a website can be made at least 70% more efficient by optimization, carbon offsetting should only be used for the remaining 30% CO2 emissions.
It is also important to know that, depending on the species, trees need at least 10 years, and often 30-50 years, to start absorbing average amounts of CO2 we take into account for these types of calculations. Further, planting trees cannot substitute for the deforestation or loss of biodiversity.
Opting to offset your digital emissions may look okay in the sustainability reports or in the eyes of your audience in the short term, but it does not fix the real problem – it doesn’t fix your performance and accessibility issues, it doesn’t improve energy efficiency or reduce CO2 emissions, and the subpar performance results continue to negatively affect user experience and conversions, and ultimately the planet.
Why is the Google Performance metric relevant for your results?
Performance, as Google’s metric, tells us what kind of real-life experience users have on our website and how well it is built.
The performance score, measured in your case as 44/100, directly affects your website’s position in Google search results. In search results, Google will always rather show websites with high performance, as it considers them good and relevant for the users.
In order for Google to consider the website worthy of showing high in the search results, you should raise the performance above 90/100.
This is possible with various design and development optimizations, and will immediately improve energy efficiency and carbon emissions!
What are the results of optimization for digital sustainability?
Environmental results
- Reduction of environmental impact – reduction of CO2 emissions caused by the use of websites by about 70%
Performance results
- Faster loading
- Improved accessibility
- Improved user experience
Business results
- A higher position on Google search results for your relevant keywords, and thus more organic visitors to the pages
- Compliance with European guidelines for sustainable design and development: Digital sustainability is a way to enhance business results and reduce pollution stemming from energy consumption
- Easier and cheaper website maintenance
- Extended longevity of websites
- Building a better image among young consumers who prefer sustainable products
Get a free digital sustainability and performance analysis of your website
Are you a B Corp or an organization with a purpose?
As a part of our ongoing efforts to bring attention to digital sustainability, we’re helping companies with a purpose kickstart their digital sustainability journey. If you’re a B Corp or an organization with a cause, we’ll conduct an analysis of your website’s carbon footprint, efficiency, performance, and user experience – for free!
Caring about your business starts with caring about the Earth. And She cares in return!
Committing to sustainability does not mean compromising on business goals – quite the opposite. Sustainable software is compliant, resilient, builds brand reputation and delivers tangible results such as enhanced web performance, usability, SEO ranking, and higher conversion rates. So, yes, the Earth is okay with your KPI’s, just asks you to be more mindful and take a greener route to accomplishing them.
