On Monday we announced that by the end of the year, Facebook’s global operations will achieve net zero carbon emissions and be 100 percent supported by renewable energy. We are well on our way to achieving this goal in large part due to the thoughtful work that we have done for the past 10 years designing, building, and operating our data centers to make them some of the most energy and water efficient data center facilities in the world. The details to how we got here really matter and most importantly, a relentless focus on execution and commitment to finding new and innovative solutions to reducing our carbon footprint.

These commitments have spurred the construction of over 5,400 megawatts (MW) –– the equivalent of what it takes to power 1.5 million U.S. households –– of new solar and wind power capacity around the world. That has reduced our emissions by more than 2.6 million metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e) over the past three years — the equivalent of taking more than half a million cars off the road for a year. Now that we are near completion of our initial goal, we are looking ahead and ramping up our efforts to fight climate change for another decade. 

We are also setting an ambitious goal to reach net zero emissions for our value chain in 2030. This means we will be tackling the carbon emissions that come from our supply chain, including construction materials and the manufacturing of server and consumer hardware, and other items like business travel and employee commuting. Over the next decade, Facebook will work to reduce carbon emissions through efficient designs, supplier engagement and carbon removal technology. Check out my interview with Alan Duong, Director of Global Strategic Engineering & Design about what goes into designing and building our state-of-the-art data centers that are now some of the most energy and water efficient facilities in the world.