Greenest data centers: What works and what doesn’t

Photo voltaic arrays. Sod roofs. Reflective white membranes. These are some of the far-out techniques that architects are using to build the nation’s greenest data centers.

But the managers of these data centers say some of the most effective ways of cutting back electricity usage -- such as raising the computer room temperature a few degrees -- also are the simplest.

A peek inside the nation’s greenest data centers shows that these facilities are a mix of high-tech and low-tech, innovative and obvious ways of cutting back on electricity and creating more environmentally friendly IT operations.

Building green data centers involves a fair amount of gamesmanship.

Some of the clever ways that architects get new data centers certified by the U.S. Green Building Council have less to do with improving energy efficiency and more to do with other environmental goals such as reducing water usage. Often it’s native landscaping, rainwater recovery systems, waterless urinals and bike racks that earn data centers enough points to qualify them as "green."

To build a green data center, you need "a team that works together and is incredibly creative," says Kath Williams, a Montana green building consultant and former vice chair of the U.S. Green Building Council. "It’s amazing where you can find the energy savings."

Interest in energy-efficient data centers has grown significantly in the past two years, as electricity bills have soared. Additionally, more data center operators are concerned about the effects of greenhouse gasses produced by the most common ways of powering computers and network gear: coal-burning plants.

Data centers are among the hardest commercial buildings to make energy efficient because the computer systems they house require so much electricity and give off so much heat. About half of the electricity consumed in a data center is from the power and cooling infrastructure that supports IT equipment, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

"It’s extremely difficult" to build a data center that meets the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) standards, Williams says. "For data centers, the challenge is the energy load."