Governmentchief information officers (CIOs)must
take a leadership position overgreen IT, as the issue becomes
increasingly politically sensitive, says analyst
Gartner.
Gartner predicts that by 2010, environmental-related issues will
be among the
top five IT management concerns for more than 50% of state and
local government organisations in North America and Europe.
Andrea Di Maio, an analyst at Gartner, said that although green
IT is an important theme for many industries, government
organisations will be more exposed to it as they play key roles in
regulating and supervising the environmental impact of IT.
He advised government CIOs and IT organisations to take IT
issues seriously and prepare for how these issues will affect work
priorities in the future.
"IT is at once a contributor to environmental problems and part
of many solutions," he said. "Governments will need to deal with
both aspects at the same time as green IT leads to new IT
investments as well as changes in the way that IT spending is
assessed and managed."
Although IT clearly contributes to energy consumption and
pollution, it also offers ways to reduce the environmental impact,
said Gartner. As the pressure mounts on policy makers to take
positions and positive actions towards relieving environmental
concerns, government IT organisations that report to them will need
to support those actions, and, as a consequence, lead by example,
said the analyst.
Di Maio said that many governments - especially at local levels
where there is often more direct or politically sensitive
responsibility for the quality of the environment - are already
investigating and engaging in IT-intensive projects that aim to
reduce air and water pollution.
Examples include environmental monitoring, congestion charge
programmes, fleet management systems, government building
automation, alternative energy sources, teleporting, online
services, environment-related changes to tax and revenue systems,
and waste management.