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Sustainability has gained significant relevance in every sector. In particular, in information and communication technology (ICT), there is growing attention towards this aspect. Measurement systems are arguably one of the numerous manifestations of ICTs, and they are virtually ubiquitous in the current 4.0 Era. This pervasiveness leads to ponder over the effect that measurement systems have on the environment. However, to date, no study addressed the sustainability of measurements and their impact on the environment. This work proposes a first methodological approach for the modeling and assessment of environmental sustainability of measurements as part of ICT. In particular, an iterative approach is presented to assess the impacts of the measurement as a whole. This also paves the way to unveil the relation between measurement sustainability and measurement uncertainty. As representative examples, in this work, two practical scenarios are considered: (i) measurement of resistances with a Wheatstone bridge and (ii) measurement of emissions from an internal combustion engine.

Sustainability is becoming one of the most important topics in almost all contexts. Because of climate change, it is imperative to be aware of the environmental impact of our actions, and so to re-evaluate the way processes are performed, including in the measurement domain. This paper discusses for the first time the environmental impact of a measurement. The analysis was carried on in the framework of recommendations by the International Telecommunication Union, which particularize ISO standards on life cycle assessment and carbon footprint to the Information and Communication Technology field. The carbon footprint was estimated for each element of a measurement by considering hardware, software, working environment, and operator-related footprint. Data were retrieved from previous literature or from public sustainability reports. As a case study, a classical resistance measurement with Wheatstone bridge was considered. Three scenarios were analysed: in-presence operation with manual control of instruments; in-presence operation with an automatic measuring station; and, finally, remote operation with an automatic measuring station. Results show that a common amount for every scenario spans from about 3000 kg to 18 000kg of equivalent carbon emission (CO2,eq) per year, wherein most of the variation derives from usage of air conditioning. Also, remote operation should be preferred to in-presence one (900kg to 1600kg of CO2,eq versus 1800kg to 4300kg of CO2,eq, with possible addition of 170kg to 310kg for the automatic measuring station).