Impact of Carbon Emissions

Task 1: The Case Study

The emission of carbon dioxide, basically from the combustion of fossil fuels, has increased drastically since the beginning of the industrial revolution. According to a study by Dhakal (2010), most of the globe’s greenhouse gas emission originates from most developed and industrious nations such as United States of America, China and the European Union. Per capita, carbon emissions are the highest in countries such as United States of America and Russia. As a result the climate has been greatly affected and has become the world’s most pressing challenge. The increase in carbon emission and other greenhouse gases have increased the world’s temperature by more than one degree Celsius. As a result, Gough (2013) identifies that ecology, physical and general health of people has been affected. There have been extreme weather events such as droughts, heat waves, floods and storms have become common effects. Sea-levels have also risen, there is altered growth of crops and systems of water have been affected. Below is a graph indicating the rise of carbon in millions of metric tons emitted into the atmosphere since the onset of industrialization in 1850s till the projection if no mitigations are set forth.

Gough (2013) depicts that carbon emission has been a great influence in global warming, and its limitation to below two degrees Celsius needs a fundamental reframing of major areas in the society and economy. Phdungsilp (2010) claim that it calls for application of renewable energies instead of fossil fuels, efficiency use of energies, minimizing extreme climate-damaging fluorinated green-house gases not leaving out sustainable mobile city planning. Basically, cities are the greatest source of carbon emission. Therefore, according to Schandl et al. (2016), the intention is to develop a computer system that can be adopted in cities to mitigate carbon emission in major industrial cities across the globe. In this sense, according to Watson et al. (2010), large data application will be a transforming factor in city governments to become more efficient, effective and evidence based in reduction of complete reduction of carbon emission. The effectiveness of big data computer systems has been identified to be robust, empirical evidence in urban policy-making. Thus, its use to reduction carbon emission from the environment will transform to smart cities. It will be a collective initiative among all nations in the world that will support, develop and implement such an innovative instrument (large data computer system) meant to reduce their carbon emission. Its objective is to transform the globe towards a sustainable and low carbon emission economy and supply structure.

Task 2: Background Research

For an effective large data systems or a website, it must enhance efficiency and lower costs, minimizing resource use and wastage, assists to make sure compliance with regulations requirements in mitigation of carbon emission. It also must encourage all urban dwellers and organizations, not leaving out small and medium size enterprises (SMEs) in environmental performance and improvement. Therefore, according to Al-Amin et al. (2015), some of organizations have tried to minimize carbon footprint in various parts of the world. An organization like Ecolibrium Energy, a Malaysian based technological company has been developing big data systems to aid in reduction of carbon in Selangor. The organization applies sensors and a cloud-based software system, gathers information to identify energy inefficiencies at different levels of production line in industries and suggest solutions to tackle emissions and energy wastage. Through the smart sensor, it develops a framework for monitoring the energy consumed and the impact on the surrounding environment. So it collects information of fuels, electricity, water and other raw material or production into a cloud-based platform. It then performs a predictive machine learning algorithms capable of identifying losses that are taking place within the industrial building and identifying any potential downtime or significant equipment, such as transformers and motors. Parsons et al. (2011) studies Vestas Wind System a Denmark based company and a signatory to the United Nations Global Compact is committed to promote the United Nations Sustainable Development by reducing the carbon footprint by producing clean energy. The company applies International Business Machine (IBM) big data to analyze several varying datasets to determine the best placement of wind turbines for optimal energy production. This is by application of constant adjusting weather data on the micro and macro level, enabling the organization to precut the best spot for installing wind turbines. The big data system combines both structure and unstructured information such as geospatial, satellite images, tidal phases, weather modeling, deforestation maps and sensor data, thus enabling them to pinpoint the best place for installing these energy generation systems.

A research by Si et al. (2017), identifies that in Singapore, the government had an initiative that they had to meet in the reduction of carbon emissions. It began by sensitizing existing data centers to meet some sustainable standards in the development of a ‘Greenmark system’. It involved that first the existing data centers and operators to adjust their functions with a focus on greater utilization, higher efficiency, offsetting carbon emissions and modernization of old facilities. It cou8ld not be attainable without application of a mixture of regulations and incentives. Over time, data centers in Singapore all businesses, system of transport, industries and energy production companies started to invest in renewables and the government developed a friendly tax environments in the reduction of carbon footprint. It is to say that in Singapore, data centers became part of the carbon emission mitigation by evolving and becoming part of the solution. A general information on environmental management systems (EMS) and websites were developed by the integration of the North American economy under the North American Free trade Agreement (NAFTA), and The Commission of Environmental Cooperation (CEC) and supported by three governments sharing the Pacific Ocean, these are, Canada, The United States and Mexico. Comoglio and Botta (2012) identifies that through the EMS, the three governments have fostered its application in aiding organizations to foster their environmental performance and move beyond compliance with the set regulations of individual countries. Via the CEC forum, these three governments have been enabled to share their experiences, practices and achievements on the mitigation of carbon emissions. For instance, back in the year 2000, CEC published a report on Improving Environmental performance and Compliance, whereby they described elements that the three governments agreed were vital in the reduction of carbon emissions as also reported by Phdungsilp (2010). Through the website, dialogues have been fostered, workshops and forum in discussion on the management of environment such as ‘the North American Pollution Prevention Partnership, the Auditing Roundtable, Mexico’s Pollution Prevention Roundtable, and the Canadian Environmental Auditing Association, to mention a few. Another major contribution that websites have played in the reduction of carbon emission is the smart route in cab services and delivery of products to the large number of consumers mainly in cities studies Davies et al. (2011). Delivery of products to their consumers by a number of vehicles such as fast foods, furniture, grocery shopping, electronics, furniture and other building materials, over an extensive period of time has greatly reduced the quantity of carbon emitted. The use of low-emission vehicles has been a great factor in play and an obvious solution, and has been emphasized by website and sophisticated route planning software that maximize the delivery route and cab services, making sure that they spend the least time on road and consequently minimizes quantity of carbon emitted studies Schandl et al. (2016). Therefore, with increased use of delivery and cab services, and the reduction of number of individuals’ vehicles in route to access the products or travels to various destinations, supported by route planning software and cab and delivery websites, carbon footprint in cities like New York, California and other cities across the globe have greatly reduced..

Task 3: Web Planning

In development of a new website, King (2017) outlines that one has to be aware of its objectives; it intended audiences and what the audience will want from it. It is developed based on the available data of mitigation of carbon emission, the forecast offered by experts in the same field and it is a project that is not for profit. Therefore the plan will outline how the website will be developed with inclusion or deduction quite possible since the website is not full proof suggesting that there is room for improvement.

Design

The design of the website will include a home page, slider, header, navigation menu, sidebar, call to action and Footer. To begin with is the home page.

Home Page

It is the opening of the page, normally located at the main website worldwide web page (URL). Its purpose is normally to; welcome visitors, assist them to be aware of what the page is all about and also guide the visitor further into the website. In this case the home page will be developed on mitigation of carbon emission via use of renewable energy. It design could be short or long, entailing more information or minimal, depending on the objective.

Slider

This is an image rotator or swipe located at the home page. This one will contain content in different slides of visual information. The image may also include buttons and texts laid on top of it.

Header

In a website, the header is the consistent area at the top of the site that includes the logo as well as the navigation menu. It might include the following; a logo, navigation menu, tagline, phone number, address, search box, buttons, social media icons, opt-in box and login or create my account link. Basically, it should be developed in a way that it maintains quite a simple and lead the user to the navigation menu.

Navigation Menu

It is part of the header and includes primary or secondary navigation, involving links that can take the visitor to other parts of the website. When both are applied, it suggest that there could be a lot of navigation required, and thus, a simple navigation menu is vital to be clear of the importance of various sites.

Sidebar

It is a section in the website that is applied to display content that is not part of the page’s essential information. This one entails an opt-in, link to other sections of the website, a call to action, connection to recent or popular advertisements, blog posts, a brief ‘About- paragraph to context, or even social media links. It also offers information about the website or organization. When sidebars are used in a website, they offer everything that is trendy that a visitor should not miss. Therefore, it should be simple and relevant, whose objective is to guide the user to an action that one wants them to take, without distracting him or her from the main information of a page.

Call to Action

A call to action, abbreviated as ‘CTA’ is a part of the website whose sole purpose is to incite visitors to per take action. In most cases, it entails an attention-grabbing headline, a simple brief sentence concerning the benefits of taking the action and a button or an opt-in box. It is considered the most essential part of a website, since it guides the user or visitor to perform what one want them to do.

Footer

Website footer is a constant information area at the bottom of a website page. It can be of any size; from a single line of copyright information to a multi-section area with consistent information, links, a map, social medial icons, a search box, opt-ins and many more. The footer is considered a vital place in a website that attracts the visitors’ attention and guides them extensively into the website when they scroll at the bottom of the page. It is the same section that contacts information, legal pages such as privacy policy are found.

Choice of URL

A website URL is normally an address towards a page where visitors find the content. It is the most direct manner for one to visit the page and normally starts with www. or http. It links to the larger site architecture. Therefore, it is recommended that the URL be simply committing to customizing every one based on what is on the website page. It has major or main categories that are vital for developing a website, which is more perceptive to the organization, and consistent as possible in the URL framework applied in the entire site. It must be short and simple and applies basic word that describes what is on the web page.

Task 4: Implementation and Testing

Possessing a website is not enough, thus the intention is to develop a website that is informative, accessible and user friendly in accordance to measures to mitigate carbon footprint by use of renewable energies. Therefore, the purpose here is to test the workability of the website. The following attachments depict the performance, accessibility, the best practice, search engine optimization (SEO) and the progressive of the web application of an Idea Solar System Company website. Testing of its performance is to avoid bad user-experience, capable of turning potential visitors away from the website and the intention is to acquire as many loyal clients as possible. To begin with, is a website I applied to test the website. The website was the Markup Validator Service denoted as validator.w30rg. It was developed to check the syntax of web documents, developed in HTML formats, by comparing the HTML document to the defined syntax of HTML therefore reporting if there exist any inconsistencies. Attached is the validator;

The index is the URL of local file that automatically loads when a web browser starts as well as when the ‘home button’ is pressed. It leads the searcher to the front page of the website of the company. As part of the functionality test, the index is tested its connection to the databases, the forms applied and the information regarding the company’s services in the mitigation of carbon emission. Below is a screenshot of testing of the index;

Functionality Testing

All the links in web pages, form applied for submitting or getting data from the user in the pages of the web, database connection and cookie testing are done. The purpose is to ensure that all the integral parts of a website are developed. All files are stored on the cookies, which enable the sessions and if their encryption are available too. For valid and effective performance, the website is tested if its content, instructions are easy to use, clear, can perfect to satisfy the purpose of the website and consistent enough. Therefore, below is a screenshot of the performance test of the website;

In the contact form, the website is tested whether the message is sending effectively and a successful message appears too. It checks the social media links on how they communicate to the user of the website as well as the visitor with the correct format and design. Finally, it checks for any form of replies triggered and checks whether the sender receives a confirmation message. Below is the screenshot of contact testing and validation;

In addition there exist images that enable accessibility of the website in enhancing its usability and performance. These images include the header image, content image attached below;

These images with an addition of others that will be sliding on the header will be beautifying the web page as well as emphasizing the services that the Solar Energy Company is offering in mitigation of carbon footprint. These images include;

Task 5: Evaluation and Reflection

Once this website is launched by the Solar Energy Company that is determined to minimize the carbon footprint, there is high chances that the issues of global warming will be minimized if not completely eliminated. Solar energy technology has existed for a while now, thus addition of a website could go way further in educating its clients in addressing the issues of carbon emission. Once the website is launched, it will be a platform where potential clients and associates will find and communicate. A website will make the Solar Energy Company to possess a unique online identity. In addition I have learnt that a lot of people trusts a company or a business that possesses a website. In the current times, where everything including shopping for groceries are undertaken online, a business website sets up a legitimacy platform, thus people will trust the product or service based on the website involved. It is also important to note that with the issues of carbon emission affecting billions of people across the globe, and the same number of people uses the internet on a daily basis, will offer the solar energy company a chance to offer solution to more than half the globe’s population. It is in accordance to the number of hours an individual spend at least six hours on the web, making it a larger avenue to reach to potential customers in finding the solution to carbon emissions in the environs. Therefore, carbon emission caused by excessive use of fossil fuels can be mitigated if several other companies and organizations adopt current web-based platforms to sensitize and educate individuals across the globe of another form of generating energy and power to run the world. Companies that have the potential to develop these solar and wind power instrument should also use the similar website in marketing affordable products and services.

References

Al-Amin, A.Q., Rasiah, R. and Chenayah, S., 2015. Prioritizing climate change mitigation: an assessment using Malaysia to reduce carbon emissions in future. Environmental Science & Policy, 50, pp.24-33.

Comoglio, C. and Botta, S., 2012. The use of indicators and the role of environmental management systems for environmental performances improvement: a survey on ISO 14001 certified companies in the automotive sector. Journal of Cleaner Production, 20(1), pp.92-102.

Davies, Z.G., Edmondson, J.L., Heinemeyer, A., Leake, J.R. and Gaston, K.J., 2011. Mapping an urban ecosystem service: quantifying above‐ground carbon storage at a city‐wide scale. Journal of applied ecology, 48(5), pp.1125-1134.

Gough, N., 2013. Thinking globally in environmental education. International handbook of research in environmental education, pp.33-44.

King, D., 2017. The Complete Website Planning Guide: A step by step guide for website owners and agencies on how to create a practical and successful scope of works for your next web design project. Ireckon Publishing.

Parsons, D.J., Chatterton, J.C., Brennan, F.P. and Kolios, A.J., 2011. Carbon Brainprint Case Study: novel offshore vertical axis wind turbines.

Phdungsilp, A., 2010. Integrated energy and carbon modeling with a decision support system: Policy scenarios for low-carbon city development in Bangkok. Energy Policy, 38(9), pp.4808-4817.

Schandl, H., Hatfield-Dodds, S., Wiedmann, T., Geschke, A., Cai, Y., West, J., Newth, D., Baynes, T., Lenzen, M. and Owen, A., 2016. Decoupling global environmental pressure and economic growth: scenarios for energy use, materials use and carbon emissions. Journal of cleaner production, 132, pp.45-56.

Su, B., Ang, B.W. and Li, Y., 2017. Input-output and structural decomposition analysis of Singapore's carbon emissions. Energy Policy, 105, pp.484-492.

Watson, R.T., Boudreau, M.C. and Chen, A.J., 2010. Information systems and environmentally sustainable development: energy informatics and new directions for the IS community. MIS quarterly, pp.23-38.