CTIA-the wireless association said those networks could play a big role in the Biden Administration's goal of reducing the country's carbon footprint.
That is according to a new report, 5G Connectivity: A Key Enabling Technology to Meet America’s Climate Change Goals commissioned by the trade group.
Use cases tied to 5G connectivity could be the equivalent to taking 72 million cars, or about 25% of the total--off the road, the report predicts and account for a fifth--or about 330 million metric tons of carbon dioxide--of the Administration's carbon reduction target, according to the report from Accenture.
“This study confirms that U.S. 5G wireless networks will be instrumental in tackling the pressing challenge of climate change,” said CTIA president Meredith Attwell Baker. “America’s wireless industry is building a world-leading 5G platform that will spur the investment and innovation necessary to meet our country’s climate objectives.”
That vehicle carbon reduction comes from reduced congestion, shorter routes and more sustainable choices like public transportation.
On the manufacturing 5G means enhanced inventory management, asset monitoring in real time, predictive maintenance, improved process and avoidance of travel.
On the green buildings front, 5G can help with real-time monitoring, increased green energy use, fuel savings because of reduced transport thanks to remote operations, energy management systems, smart meters and grids, and renewable microgrids. The report says that could reduce CO2 emissions from 12 million homes.
Of course, all those technologies will need to be adopted for the advantages of 5G to come into play.
The report looked at 31 use cases where mobile 5G could be used to reduce carbon emissions, then calculated their emission avoidance. ■
