Meeting today’s capacity demands is putting pressure on operators’ sustainability initiatives.

The world’s appetite for bandwidth is ever-increasing, with total worldwide broadband capacity now at 1,217 Tb/s and demand growing at a four-year 28% CAGR.

In an earlier blog, we looked at the opportunities this creates for network operators around new high-throughput, low-latency use cases like cloud gaming, smart infrastructure and remote operation of equipment. We also saw that the rise of AI content is set to drive demand up further in the near future.

But meeting that increased demand brings a significant challenge. Many operators have made public sustainability pledges, often aligning themselves with the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals and committing to transparency around energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions.

Ramping up capacity while bringing down consumption and emissions is therefore a very real business challenge. Operators who can meet it will not only be able to hold their heads high in front of customers, regulators and investors, but will also benefit from lower costs and increased margins.

Balancing capacity with consumption in the network

So, how can operators practically address the challenge? One obvious area is the design of the network itself. A large proportion of today’s bandwidth is delivered over networks built with legacy hardware with a high cost-per-bit in terms of power consumption.

Upgrading some or all of the network to include next-generation optics can deliver a significant reduction in energy consumption while massively ramping up capacity.

Ciena’s latest generation of coherent optics, WaveLogic 6, for example, offer a 300% increase in fiber capacity with 90% lower power consumption per bit, compared to our earlier WaveLogic 3 generation. It also takes up 90% less real estate, enabling smaller and more energy-efficient housing.

The carbon footprint of the network can be reduced in other ways, too. Subsea operator Aqua Comms has identified two further initiatives that could potentially deliver sustainability gains. One is reducing regeneration at cable landing stations (CLS), and the other is re-assessing the need to provide protected backhaul by default on every route. While not every operator will be able to introduce these changes, they are worth assessing as the sustainability gains can be significant.

Embracing the circular economy is another way to bring down GHG emissions. Recycling, refurbishing or repurposing end-of-life network equipment keeps it out of landfill for longer, and lowers demand for new materials and equipment with their associated environmental impact.

Working with sustainability-minded suppliers

The interconnected nature of the communications industry means that bigger sustainability gains can be achieved faster by working with ecosystem partners and suppliers.

Meta is one hyperscaler that is challenging its suppliers to do more . It set its communications infrastructure suppliers a goal to deliver a 50% power/bit reduction and a doubling of bandwidth/channel in Gen 6 transponder by 2024/25. Ciena leapt at the challenge and achieved (and exceeded) these goals with WaveLogic6.

And it’s not just about buying energy-efficient products, but also looking for suppliers and partners with a deep commitment to sustainability. As a responsible partner to network operators worldwide, for example, Ciena has a Science-Based Targets Initiative (SBTI)-approved goal to reduce our Scope 1 and 2 emissions by 80.6% by 2030 and our Scope 3 emissions per capacity shipped in G/sec by 71.3% by the same date, both compared to 2019.

We’re striving for that in every part of the business, from using recycled materials in our packaging to optimizing distribution and logistics, to installing LED lighting across our facilities worldwide. We also operate a takeback and recycling service and ensure that any returned equipment that cannot be recycled is disassembled and disposed of sustainably.

Get expert help to start your network sustainability transformation

When it comes to our customers, a big part of our Adaptive Networks vision is about making networks significantly more sustainable in terms of energy, space, waste, and materials.

As well as providing some of the most energy-efficient products available today, our Network Transformation Services are here to help every operator get closer to its sustainability goals.

With over 30 years’ experience of working with the world’s largest network providers, we can work with you to build the most adaptive, sustainable and customer-centric networks possible.

If you’d like to know more about our network transformation services, visit https://knowledge.ciena.com/services/.