Artificial Intelligence (AI) is revolutionizing industries across the world. However, these advancements come with a cost. According to a Jan. 7 article published by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), “data centers could account for up to 21% of overall global energy demand by 2030 when the cost of delivering AI to customers is factored in.” These technologies are finding their way into industries across the nation, including education and energy management. To better understand this topic, Professor for the University of Maine School of Earth and Climate Sciences Dr. Karl Kreutz provided their input on environmental implications of increased AI use across universities like UMaine.
According to Dr. Kreutz, the major obstacle universities across the nation face is determining how to account for the growing energy consumption.
“AI certainly doesn’t seem like it’s going to go away. So we have to figure this out. The prudent thing to do is to choose pathways that are responsible for future generations and the environment,” said Dr. Kreutz.
While there are many factors to consider in order to model a new energy infrastructure that would support increased AI use, Dr. Kreutz believes a particular focus should be placed on limiting its impact on the climate. Unfortunately, the most responsible choices simply are not always feasible.
For instance, the UMaine Office of Sustainability prides itself in making our campus more green. Their goal, as they state, is that “sustainability awareness and a genuine concern for the health of our environment become second nature to each and every member of the UMaine community.” Despite this, UMaine still relies on fossil fuels.
“When you walk around campus in the winter, you’ll see steam plumes coming up, and probably not that many students understand that this campus’s energy generation and distribution system is still from the 1800s,” Dr. Kreutz said.
To Dr. Kreutz, this lack of awareness around a potentially harmful energy generation system represents a larger theme of how the general public is unaware of the inner workings of energy policies across college campuses.
Dr. Kreutz shared that retrotting the entire campus with a new heating system would be incredibly costly and obtrusive, meaning that as of now, burning fossil fuels is the best option the University has. Regardless, UMaine may be falling behind.
“More than 40 colleges and universities now obtain 100% or more of their electricity from renewable energy sources” according to a 2020 review by Environmental America. With AI becoming increasingly prevalent in the education sector, now more than ever making the switch to renewable energy sources seems vital to protecting the environment and curbing climate change.
Just as with any topic, there are two sides to this coin. Across the globe, there is a growing concern for the impact of AI on fossil fuel consumption.
“On the other side of the coin, you have some people saying that as these AI systems grow and become more sophisticated, that’s going to lead to breakthroughs in energy efficiency which will then reduce the amount of energy that AI is going to need in the future,” said Dr. Kreutz.
Despite this, Dr. Kreutz stated that the ultimate goal of carbon neutrality will rely heavily on the development and use of green energy sources.
For many students and staff on campus, mitigating environmental impacts of AI use seems well out of their control. Many assert that the largest impacts result from choices made by major corporations and the more powerful nations across the world. Yet, Dr. Kreutz expressed that individuals on campus can make a difference, and a lot of it will come down to education and awareness when evaluating personal use of AI based tools.
As a final word, Dr. Kreutz urged students to “get educated, make sure you’re participating in elections – because they do have consequences – and pay attention to what’s happening at your local, state and the federal level.”