Post #21 Greener WiFi/Internet; (More) Beginner Thoughts

I am not a WiFi tech. nor I.T. trained. You may wish to follow along with my own layperson thoughts that I am happy to share here after my research. Your own thinking & conclusions are also necessary. Hopefully I can save you some time by sending some of your thoughts in helpful directions & towards useful questions.

The internet: “in the air”. In this post by “greener”, I generally mean better for the planet Earth. Following on my last post, what are some ways to make the internet (&  WiFi) more sustainable &/or eco-friendly? It’s recently estimated that power accounts for up to 90% of telecom costs, with energy consumption the largest source of wireless networks’ carbon emissions. Here are 5 hopeful ways forward:

1. Apparently lower power consumption can be had with WiFi 6, utilizing “Target Wake Time technology, where a device can be put into sleep mode until it needs to be connected to receive new data”.

2. It’s in the works to soon use flying mobile base stations (using solar-powered drones) for spreading *5G network rollouts, considered especially useful for more remote areas. (*I have read that WiFi 7 has some planned launch this year, & will hope that base stations can be adapted to WiFi 6 & WiFi 7 as/when needed.)

4. Over a year ago it was stated that “5G networks [would] generate significant increases in power consumption” & ways were suggested to mitigate that. Ways included: predictive (AI-based) energy management systems “enabling pockets of power savings” that might reduce network energy consumption & cost “by 20% to 30%”. I don’t know if system has yet been created.

5. An AI-based (predictive of energy patterns) system might make an appreciable dent regarding the “radio access network (RAN) [which] accounts for an estimated 80% of mobile network consumption”. Because a predictive AI system might “shut down certain parts of the RAN … when not needed”. Again, I don’t know if system has yet been created.

And Please Note:  I revised my Dec. 26^th post; I deleted my beginner thought there re: “info./opinions are being expressed about exposure to EMF radiation from routers, possibly causing health issues“. Because I searched further & have now seen notable authority (government) & people with science background disagreeing that any such health issues are being caused. I read that in my country WiFi devices “must meet standards to ensure they do not exceed radiofrequency EMF exposure limits”. I continue to be interested in any new definitive information on the subject.