Collecting data about climate change while valuing privacy.

To deal with the issues of climate change.  We will need to collect data, so we have better knowledge on how to deal with the issue. I will first talk about the area of  personal carbon footprints. As people will want to personally reduce their carbon footprint. And services that can  allow users to reduce their carbon lifestyle can be useful. But to do so services will collect data on your lifestyle to give suggestions to reduce the user’s footprint. For example, if the user gives the service information about his diet. The app can give suggestions to eat less meat and become vegan. But now the service has information on the user’s diet. Which can be sold on to other people. This can produce personalised ads based on the user’s diet. Like a no-meat burger being advertised to user based on their food history. Without the expressed permission of the user. The user can feel their privacy is being violated.

To get an idea of the carbon footprint of the user. The user will need to answer a few questions about his or her lifestyle. Questions about energy consumption. To diet. To transport. With all this information, you have a good idea of the carbon footprint of the person. But also, you have a somewhat detailed profile on the user. From which will prove very useful to ad companies. So, we need to find a way of getting accurate carbon footprints while valuing privacy.

The second is large-scale tracking.  Using satellite data, we can track gas leaks from around the world using infrared and other wavelengths to spot gas. But as doing these factories and any industrial services must know any semblance of privacy is gone as they are being watched from the sky. Granted this method proves extremely useful. For finding methane and CO2 leaks. As leaks like those can produce a lot of emissions while flying under the radar.

These two examples allow us to have better information about emissions. But may have traded privacy if we are not careful. The second example is less of an issue. As not all the factories industrial process is being watched. Only spotting for abnormalities for emissions. Mainly gas leaks. Unlike the personal footprint example. Where the service can know your general lifestyle. And that information can be used for purposes other than reducing the footprint of the user.

Some areas were collecting data won't have an issue with privacy. For example, collecting data on energy output on renewables. By doing that we can better match the released energy to the grid. And the is little threat of privacy concerns as this information most all renewable energy users want.  Google DeepMind did this and was able to increase the economic value of their wind turbines by 30%. By tracking the demand for energy and forecasting the amount of energy a certain wind turbine will produce.

Another example I’m not too sure about is using satellite imagery to locate renewables around an area. This is used to locate wind turbines and solar panels on people’s roof. There is not a central database where you can see who has a solar panel on their roof. Or wind turbines in their ranch. So, you can use machine learning to spot these items in an image. Sanford researchers was able to do this, with DeepSolar and DeepWind.  With deep wind they overlaid the wind patterns on a map. To see which wind turbines will be the most effective at any given time.

While these methods are effective, you are looking at people’s houses to find these solar panels. Is having solar panels something that residents are willing to share? As your looking at satellite data. You're not asking the permission of the homeowner.  The wind turbines are less of an issue. As winds turbines are large enough that any person that lived in the local area will know about it.  

Another example I think violates privacy but may be worth it. It is using satellite data, to track deforestation. By using satellite imagery, we can see where illegal logging is taking place. As the logging is illegal the reduction of privacy may be worth it. Many of these places were deforestation is happening is on public land. So, if a person is doing something illegal on public property. You can make the case that other people should know about it.