Little Progress on Green in Government ICT Report

Thanks to Dr Idris Sulaiman for identifying the few mentions of sustainability of ICT in the "Review Independent Review of Implementation of the ICT Reform Program" by Dr Ian Reinecke for the Australian Government:

Chapter 7. Sustainability (p.29)

7.1 Sustainability plan

Implementation:

The Department of Energy, Water, Heritage and the Arts (DEWHA) was tasked with developing in conjunction with Finance and other agencies a whole-of-Government ICT Sustainability Plan. The plan was intended to identify appropriate standards to be adopted for all ICT purchases and to set out whole-of-Government targets against which agencies should report.

Large agencies were required to develop ICT efficiency plans that should include the measurement of data centre energy efficiency and include energy usage targets. These agencies would undertake periodic ICT energy assessments and their plans would be assessed by DEWHA, which would report to Ministers on the outcomes.

Effectiveness:

A whole-of-Government sustainability plan was prepared for SIGB in late 2009. The plan aimed to align Government acquisition and use of ICT with its overall sustainability agenda by identifying mandatory environmental standards to be applied in ICT procurement. A process to set ICT energy consumption targets was outlined including measurement of ICT energy intensity. Agencies with an annual ICT spend of more than $30M were required to develop IT energy management plans; all had completed their IT energy management plans by May 2010. Industry consultations occurred during preparation of the plan and submissions were received; overall feedback expressed strong support for Government leadership in ICT sustainability.

7.2 ICT quick wins

Implementation:

The Gershon Report recommended that a list of possible quick wins to assist ICT sustainability be prepared including software controlled energy savings of personal computers.

Effectiveness:

A list of Green ICT quick win initiatives was developed by Finance and DEWHA and made available on the AGIMO web site and a Green ICT Procurement kit is due for release in 2010. It was estimated that the Australian Government could improve its energy performance by up to 25 per cent through to mid- 2015 on current consumption levels. (Page 29)