PCs won't be having an eco-Christmas

The amount of energy wasted by UK office equipment left on standby over the ten-day Christmas period would be enough to roast 4.4 million turkeys, predicts hardware maker Canon.

With offices deserted, devices left running will use 43.6 million kWh of electricity. In total, the energy wastage will cost UK businesses around £8.66m.

In environmental terms, Canon's research suggests that around 19,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide will be produced unnecessarily -- enough to fill the same number of 25m swimming pools.

PCs are the worst energy wasters with the prediction half of them will be left on over the Christmas holiday, using 37.8 million kWh of energy. Other equipment will contribute with all fax machines expected to be left running.

David Smith, marketing director at Canon UK, said the figures show that "businesses that don't turn off their PCs and printers are literally throwing money away as well as damaging the environment over the festive period".

"We have only looked at office equipment that is left in standby mode so imagine how much higher these figures could be if devices are left completely on," he added.

The research was carried out by Canon and partially based on figures from the National Energy Foundation, Infosource and the Carbon Trust.