Increasing energy usage by datacentres is a concerning issue, as is the associated environmental cost ( Datacentres using 6% of electricity supply in UK and US, research says, 13 May ).

Datacentres use up huge and rapidly increasing amounts of electricity, and data storage is responsible for more carbon emissions than the commercial airline industry. This is to say nothing of the contribution to land and water use, e-waste, supply chain issues, refrigerant gas leaks etc.

However, we as individuals do have some power to reduce this problem. While we have been led to believe that storing photos and files on our phones and other devices is (or should be) cost-free, this is the actual cost.…